One chapter closes.......the next one opens!

Good times in Washington DC at the Ambassador Retreat

  Sometimes you have to make tough decisions, and today is no exception. It's kind of a "good news", "sad news" situation. I was recently accepted into a Peer Support Recovery Training Certification program offered by The Ohio Mental Health & Addiction Services Board. This is the Good news! Due to adding this to my plate, I will have to resign my duties as Program Coordinator & Ambassador for Runwell, The Linda Quirk Foundation. Now you know the "sad news" part of my decision.
   The last couple of years with Runwell have been nothing short of life changing! I owe Linda, along with Kim, and all of the Ambassadors, a big Thank You for having made my time with Runwell truly great! I know our paths will continue to cross in the future. I have been working on getting my business website up and running and I look forward to when I start offering services through my company, Active Recovery Consulting in the very near future. I really look forward to having a positive impact on the NorthEast Ohio community. I am excited to be starting the next chapter of my story and look forward to seeing where this journey takes me. Even though we are parting ways I am still fundraising for Runwell to benefit Recovery Resources in Cleveland by competing in The Eastern States 100 mile race
in August and continue to support their mission! I hope you will too.

 Thanks for the support these last couple of years! It has made a difference!

Me and my wife, Mary, at the Run for Recovery race in 2015

I look forward to being able to use my experience and knowledge with substance abuse and mental health issues to help those in need live a lifestyle that promotes health and wellness. There are options available if you are willing to take a more active role in your personal wellbeing. 


Ready to take the first steps toward a healthier lifestyle? It's time to get "Active"

Next chapter!

Taking An Active Role In Your Physical, And Mental Health

I have been in recovery from cocaine and alcohol abuse for over 23 years.
I have also been cigarette free since February 12th 2007. These vices were ways that I used to deal with, well actually not deal with life and its stressors.Along with my abuse of drugs and alcohol I was also diagnosed with a mental illness. Dual diagnosis of Mental Health & substance abuse are quite common. Dual diagnosis is the term used when a person has a mood disorder such as depression or bipolar disorder (also known as manic depression) and a problem with alcohol or drugs. A person who has a dual diagnosis has two separate illnesses, and each illness needs its own treatment plan. 
In my case, I have had symptoms of depression & mild bipolar disorder for many years. 
Nothing like abusing alcohol, tobacco, and drugs to try and keep one's demons in check. 
At one point I was on an antidepressant & a mood stabilizer to help me cope. When I got into running after I quit smoking I realized that since my disorders were not too severe I may be able to cope through physical activity, talk therapy, and some good old soul searching. It does help to be married to someone with experience in the mental health field! Mary could give me the guidance and support needed, and also helped me with my quest to find a qualified therapist to talk to.
  To be able to function without being on medication is not always easy and demands that I take an all encompassing approach to my mental well being. This approach includes nutrition, physical exercise, talk therapy, yoga, and quite a bit of reflection. In February of 2015 I founded my company, Active Recovery Consulting with the idea I was pretty much going to gear it to helping those with substance use & mental health issues. As I learned more and thought more about it I realized we are all basically in some type of recovery on a daily basis. Whether it be from a crappy day at work, a disagreement with a loved one or just someone cutting you off on the road we all need some "recovery" time.
  If you follow me on Facebook I am sure you have seen posts with Mary and myself out having fun, smiling, & just enjoying our life together. This is in part due to the time and effort that we both put into our relationship when things aren't going so great. Luckily for us we usually only have "our days" once in a while and our relationship, like us has grown over the years. I am very fortunate that Mary is understanding and knows that sometimes my mouth engages way before my brain.

 If I don't use the coping skills I have learned or participate in the activities that keep me grounded I can be a real pain in the ass sometimes. After all I am still 75% stubborn Italian! Bottom line is that in order to grow as and individual, or a couple you will experience growing pains. It is how you choose to deal with these"pains"that you strengthen your relationships. Just like watching an athlete who seemingly does something effortlessly, a lot of work goes on behind the scenes. 
  I say this just to point out that nothing in life is guaranteed and we are owed nothing by anyone. If you want to achieve something, I say go for it but be prepared to put in the work necessary to reach your goals. It is also possible to live with certain mental illnesses and dealing with what life can throw at you without taking medications. I feel that we live in a society that overprescribes medication and tries to convince the public that there are easy answers to whatever ails you! 

If you watch television commercials, there seems to be a pill available to "fix" anything. Most times this "quick fix" is not a fix at all but a way for a company to profit off of questionable claims. Taking an active part in the "movie" that is your life is a great first step to achieving overall health and wellness.

La La Land Pennsylvania...Eastern States 100 Report

I have been waiting 8 months to run my 1 and only 100 mile race of the year. The inaugural Eastern States 100 in Pennsylvania. With a lot of help from generous friends & family I raised money for Runwell as this was one of the events we helped sponsor this year.It was great to finally meet some of the other runners who were also fund raising on behalf of Runwell for this event. We stayed at a nice cabin together in Happy Acres Campground a short distance from the start/finish. I arrived Friday afternoon after a 5 hr drive and was happy to see the weather was supposed to to be pretty nice all weekend. I made it to packet pickup and saw Linda Quirk the founder of Runwell. We chatted a bit then I went for a ride and took some pics of the area. It was breathtaking! Trust me I knew my breath was going to be taken away many times over the next day or so! I have spent many years in the Allegheny Mountains up By Warren & Mckean County Pa but this was going to be  a different beast all together!!! 

 

                                       


We had a great group of runners from NE Ohio trying out this Inaugural race.
Hanging out with everyone made for a great weekend even if my results did not.
Thank you everyone!!! There really are too many names to mention and that was part of the magic of the weekend and my Ultra running experience in general! I would Like to offer congratulations to 3 people in particular that managed to complete this beast of a course!

Congratulations  Jimmy Heun, Crystal Shinosky, & Mike Dowdell!!!

Saturday morning came early and I wasn't any more or less nervous than any other 100 start. If anything I was a bit more relaxed because I knew it was going to be a slow go. I had posted earlier that I would love to finish in sub 30 hrs based upon the fact I did the Hyner View Challenge 50k in 6hrs 46mins this past April. Hyner Run was going to be part of the 100 mile course so I thought that was a reasonable best case scenario. The title of this blog gives you a fair indication of how much I underestimated the effects of mile upon insufferable mile of loose rocks and steep draws on my body & mind. Not to mention overestimating my abilities! They advertised this race as not for beginners. No false advertising there!

Appx. 165 of us started at 5am and the first mile or two was a nice flat jaunt down the road and into the park and then BAM! 1200 feet climb to just let me know what I have gotten myself into. It was a long journey up that first climb and to add a little excitement I got stung on the side of my head by a bee that wanted a few more minutes of sleep. Not a good sign! At least I am not allergic.I would get stung many hours but not that many miles later on the leg. As I told a few people on the trail that day "If the worst thing I feel are these bee sting I will be in good shape". It wasn't even close to being the worst things I felt and I wasn't close to being in good shape either!

I think on a good day a person of my abilities can run maybe 25% of this course. It wasn't just the 20,000+ feet of elevation change but throw in the endless loose rocks and the 6" wide trail canting to the 25'-100'+ drops up the draws and this course is better suited for power hikers. I think there were spots where the RD just had people tie flags to trees to make it look like a trail! It was pretty awesome!
Rumor has it there are some beautiful views & vistas but the only thing I was looking at the majority of the time was my feet. I honestly can't believe no one injured themselves on these demon rocks from Hell!

I did what I could and actually felt pretty good except for my lower back which decided to start acting up two days prior to the race. I am not going to say the lower back pain was what kept me from finishing but it was definitely a contributing factor. Mentally I just was not prepared to go at it for 36 hours if that's what it was going to take. I thought doing Oil Creek in 29hrs 26mins was tough last year and being out there for 6.5 more hours did not compute. When I realized it was going to take me between 10 & 11 hrs to do the first 50k I knew I was in for a long strange trip through the woods.

One thing that kept me going was seeing some of my friends at the crew access areas. Great to be greeted by smiling faces and words of encouragement. Thanks also to all of the volunteers that worked tirelessly to keep us runners going! You Guys & Gals Rocked!!!!!

Laurie Rehbergar & her husband Paul had graciously agreed to pace & crew for me starting around mile 40. They were making the drive in that morning and hoped to see me at Hyner Run. I came into the aid station and saw them along with a few other friends and except for my back pain and being down about how long it was taking I felt fine. I changed and freshened up with a little mouthwash, deodorant and Axe spray and told them I would see them at Mile 51. Not sure why but within 2 miles of leaving Hyner Run my back got worse and I slowed even more. Laurie was going to pace me from mile 60 to the finish but I knew in that stretch I needed someone to join me at mile 50 not 60. Luckily for me Paul and Laurie had already decided that Paul would start pacing me at 50. Everything is sort of fuzzy from here until the end of my race.

I ran as much as I could with Paul given the terrain and my condition. He got me to mile 60 and Laurie took over from there. I really feel bad because I did not want to drop with Laurie & Paul being there. I really don't think I managed to do much running except for one crazy burst I had somewhere in the 12 miles with Laurie. The constant up & down and slipping on moving rocks was all I could take. I knew after we left the aid station at mile 65 or so that my day was going to end in the dreaded DNF. I tried to be a little jovial with Laurie but it is hard when all you want to do is stop moving and take a nap. When we finally did make it to mile 73.2 aid station I told them I was done and the gentleman said "you were done 34 minutes ago you just didn't know it" I saw my Good friend Des and her pacer Mel at the aid station waiting to be picked up. Des had been fighting the good fight but also got timed out at mile 73.2. The people at the aid station did a great job of getting a vehicle to us and we were headed down the mountain under the power of 4 wheels and I was okay with that!

                                       The only view of the finish line I would get on this day!!!

Of the 165 starters I believe 72 finished and only a total of 78 runners made it as far as mile 73.2
If it weren't for Laurie & Paul I would never have made it past mile 51. I owe both of you a big thank you and will not forget the patience and support you showed even when I was heading up the draw at a blistering 40 minute mile pace! I was 100% sure I had no interest in redemption next year. now I am at 99%
As my wife Mary says, I have to be honest with myself and ask do I really want to spend close to 36 hrs mostly hiking! The answer right now is no I don't. That's down the road too far for me to worry about now.

 I managed a 50k trail race yesterday with no ill effects to close out my trail running summer. I will start road marathon training next week as I would like to Boston Qualify at the Columbus Marathon in October!

Hope to see you on a road or trail somewhere!!!!!

Getting one, Forgetting one, and not even thinking about one!

April was a great running month with milder temps and some great races.

Even though I wasn't planning on it I ran a 1/2 marathon due to someone having to drop out.

Thank you for the registration transfer Sunder I hope everything worked out okay

I was able to achieve my 1/2 marathon PR thanks to a runner friendly course and perfect weather at the Towpath 1/2 on April 6th. It also helps to run with faster runners for as long as you can! That runner being my good friend Bert who ran a 1.32.30 which was good for 2nd in age group and 38th place out of about 575 runners. I averaged a 7:25 pace which for me at this time of year and with my lack of speed training was great. I ended up 3rd in my age group and 66th overall and am excited about my chances at my road marathon in October.

1/2 marathon PR of 1.37.03

A week after the Towpath 1/2 was the Forget The PR 50K at Mohican Sate Park.

Me and a group of my Outrun friends got a cabin strategically located about 100 yards from the finish. The name is appropriate because due to the hills most people are not going to achieve their PR at this race. Unless of course it is your first 50K!

This year they added a trifecta option for those overachiever types.

It consisted of a 4.2 mile "sprint" on Friday evening, the 50k or 25k on Saturday and a 1/2 marathon on Sunday. I saw no need to inflict any more damage on my body then necessary especially since two weeks after Mohican was the Hyner View Trail Challenge 50k in PA.

Thank you Rob, Hugh and Johna and everyone volunteering their time over the weekend!
Forget the PR is one of my favorite runs and seeing so many familiar faces makes it even better.
Sure hope that next year we get to cross under the covered bridge!

Forget the PR 50K Outrun Adventure

Two weeks later I was headed to Pennsylvania for Hyner View Trail Challenge 50k.
Meaning no disrespect to "Bad Ass hill" but you are are just a puppy compared to "Humble Hill" in Pennsylvania. I was completely satisfied with a 6hr 47min finish for the 50K. This was a recon mission to see what type of terrain I will be dealing with in mid August at the inaugural Eastern States 100. There was about 7500" of climb for the 50k with most being 3 major hills.
The one downhill was so long I almost took a break from running but since the ups were not run-able I just kept motoring downward at a good clip. Managed to stay upright until mile 29 which was part of the last downhill to the finish. I don't bounce like I used to!

Not even a thought of a 50k PR!

I have heard about the food after the race at Hyner and it was epic!
A barbecue for 1200 people with all the trimmings and desserts and of course for those that partake their was no shortage of ale.
I would have stayed longer but my original plan was to do the Hyner 50k and drive back home and do another 50k at O24 a 24 hr race hosted by Outrun that started Saturday at 8am and would finish Sunday at 8am.
 Last year I was able to do 34 miles at O24 on Saturday then drive to Forget The PR on Sunday morning and do the 50K. The 5hr drive after Hyner was enough for my legs and brain to say not going to happen!
I did three 1 mile loops and went home and crashed so I could get back to O24 early Sunday to see the finish. I have a soft spot for O24 since it was my first overnight training for my first 100 miler in 2012. I have quite a few friends that I met at the inaugural O24 and have been on the race committee the last 2 years. Zack Johnson puts on a first class event that reached capacity(150) this year!

Seeing so many people reach goals they probably thought unattainable not to long ago was great!

A big congrats to my cousin Jimmy who did his first 100k despite the fact that his running partner in crime Craig broke his ankle early on and had to forget his hope of doing his first 100k too. Craig did come back after the trip to the emergency room and walked a couple loops with his crutches!!

A BIG CONGRATULATIONS TO EVERYONE AT O24 !!!!    YOU ALL ROCK!!!

Looking forward to May and hope to see you on a road or trail soon!.......Mike

The Start of Something Special!

It has been a heck of a winter for NE Ohio this year but I think we are almost done with the snow!
I have had a great month of March as far as running goes.
My 2nd 50k of the year was The Buzzard 50k In Hinckley Ohio on March 15th.

Ice and slick trails made for a slow go but I did claim the Grand Masters Division and finished 8th overall. Thank you Roy, Shannon and all of the volunteers and runners for a great event

                                     

I had 6 days to recover until I was to run the inaugural Bad Water Cape Fear 51.4 miler in North Carolina on Bald Head Island. The last 38 miles was all on the beach and was sure to make this a tough run.

         I was pretty sure I wouldn't be running in snow and below freezing temps either!

More significant than the actual running was the fact that this was to be my first race as a volunteer Ambassador for Runwell The Linda Quirk Foundation dedicated to help fight the disease of substance abuse.

As someone who has been in recovery for over 20 years I have a vested interest in this fight.

My wife Mary made the 750 mile drive with me and was looking forward to meeting "Team Runwell' and sharing in this first adventure together. As always if it weren't for Mary there is no adventure taking place. I can't thank her enough for the support and compassion she has for my passion. You're the best love!!! 

 We reached the Deep Point Marina after a nice uneventful 12 hr drive and were now a short ferry ride from our stay on the island. We made it to the Runwell house around 8:45 pm Thursday and I was glad we had an entire day to relax before the race Saturday morning.

 I had met Linda Quirk the founder of Runwell and Pam Rickard who was a Runwell Ambassador at the time briefly back in 2012 at O24 which is a 24 hour race put on by Outrun(Ohio Ultra Trail Runners) that takes place in Kirtland Ohio. I had so much fun in 2012 I have been part of the race committee the last 2 yrs. There are still spots available for the 4/26/14 race. Register at Ultrasignup.com

I had the pleasure of seeing Pam at different events and keeping in touch via social media and my interest in Runwell grew. It was through my correspondence with Pam these last several months that I decided to dedicate myself to as I like to say "Giving Back to Move Forward". My love for running, my experience with substance abuse and my need to have a greater purpose in my life led me to this Island I had never heard of before this year.

I like to use the term cautiously optimistic when partaking in new endeavors. You never know how the dynamics of a group are going to come together even when you all are fighting for the same cause. Any apprehension that I had going into the weekend was gone almost instantly!

I cannot thank Linda and her husband Randy enough for their hospitality.

Along with Pam and her husband Tom and their daughter Sophie we shared the house with Linda's son Jason and Randy's daughter Katherine and her two children Emma & Aidan.

Chemistry is a key component to successful relationships and I think I can say we all felt the vibrancy and excitement and passion of why we were there. We were a team and even though we hadn't known each other long it felt like we had been a team for years!

                                                    Race morning excitement!

       

Jason and Katherine were to attempt their first 50k runs while Linda, Pam, and myself opted for 51.4 miles. Something tells me that Randy and Mary and Tom did as much running as we did Saturday and they weren't even racing. At least you had golf carts!

We arrived at the start and saw some familiar faces and faces that would soon be familiar as we would pass each other a few times on the beach later in the day. Good to see everyone so excited about this inaugural event. Chris Kostman from AdventureCORPS the RD and his wife Laurie and all of the volunteers made this an unforgettable event. Already thinking of how much faster I can run it next year!
Chris gave the pre-race Race Director pep talk played the National Anthem through the loud speaker and it was time to run. There was a pretty good group that took off at a quick pace and I managed to keep them within my sights for a short while. I think I had the same idea as they did. Run fast the first 12 miles of asphalt roads to have some time in the bank when we hit the beach for the last 39 miles. On paper it was a good theory except for one major flaw. After a few miles my 52 year old legs let me know they were not yet recovered fully from the previous weekends 50k.  By mile 2 I had to slow my road pace down by almost 1 minute per mile and figured  the sand would have to be pretty packed for me to finish in my goal of under 10 hrs.

It wasn't and I didn't!

I did get to see Mary and Randy and the kids a few times as we ran the road by the beach house a couple times before we would hit the sand. It was a nice run on the island roads and then we did 1 mile or so of trail before we came to the Conservancy and The SAND.....miles and miles of unforgiving beach. It wasn't as packed as I was hoping and I think myself along with many others ran at least an extra mile or three  towards and away from the surf to find the "best" footing.

There is a local 5 mile race in Mentor called The Johnnycake Jog. Everyone talks about the final turn when you hit the last 2 mile straight away and are running down Mentor Avenue to the finish
I hear people say how much they hate that stretch and it seems to go on forever.

NOT EVEN CLOSE!!!

Picture making that turn running almost 5x that distance turning around doing it again and then repeating the whole process!! Also figure the majority of the time there are just other runners and some people surf fishing. No cheering crowds or people sipping coffee in their lounge chairs telling you that you look great and are almost done.
Aside from us runners and volunteers the cheering sections consisted of a group of ladies relaxing on the beach and a couple fisherman who seemed to be a bit more relaxed than myself as they listened to music and sipped beverages from the tailgates of their vehicles.
There were times when all I could see was a runner about 1/2 mile in front of me and a couple about the same distance behind and nothing else save for a few birds.

Hours of sun, sand, and water! Thank goodness for the voices in my head!!

Luckily for me Mary made it back from her "Hot Stone" massage in time to meet me at the Conservancy before I headed back out for the last 19 miles or so. I wasn't quite sure if she would be recovered enough from the previous day's "Hot Stone" pedicure to fully appreciate the massage!!!

She was and she did!! 

Fortunately I had enough in the tank that my plan of letting no one pass me the last 20 miles worked just fine. I felt fairly strong and did a combination of 1/4 mile power walking 3/4 mile running for miles 32-41.5. I was able to pass 8 people up using this method and pretty much never came close to passing the ninth. He kept just enough in front of me that I managed to narrow the gap to 2 minutes but that was it. Way to finish strong Eric Gelber!!

It was great seeing the Runwell team on the beach during the race.
Seeing Katherine and Jason only a few miles out from the finish of their first 50k was awesome!!

                                                    You two rocked it!!

Watching Pam pass by on her way back to the finish and seeing Linda on my way back got me pumped. Pam finished in 10 hrs. 40 mts. and I came in at 10 hrs 51 mts.

                                      50 miler PR by over 35 minutes!!

Linda came in a couple hrs later and made it 5 for 5 for the Runwell runners.
Pretty incredible since Linda hasn't been able to train much these last 6 weeks.

                                           To all of the Runners........Congratulations!!!!!

Nice seeing all of you out on the course finishing what you started especially  Laura Makey, Keith Hanson And Drew Coombes.

Three weeks until Forget The PR 50k at Mohican State Park in Ohio.
No sand but maybe a hill or two!!!

Hope to see you out on a trail or road somewhere.

Mike