Goruck 10l Bullet Review

I got the Goruck 10l bullet in April, i needed a water bag that had good storage, and could take a beating. I have used it for a Goruck Light, a spartan super in new jersey, the spartan beast in Vermont, o2x at sugarbush, shale hill and plenty of training runs. This company is committed to making a high quality product. The lifetime grantee, and the fact that they fix and send it back if you somehow manage to break the military grade product is great. I know of people that bought their hat, and it shredded after years of use, and they sent a new one in the mail, no hoops to jump through. But back to the bag, this thing held the 4 bricks needed for the light with no real issue, it also held the water and plenty of snacks. I wore it wile rucking Washington, it was about 30 lbs, and considering it was 30 on my back the whole day, it was pretty comfortable, just make sure to wear a shirt, or you will get a nice mark on your back. In new Jersey i was testing how it would feel in a race, and it was great held up fine. It gives you the confidence to throw it wile doing the barbwire crawl, knowing i could throw it as far as i could, then roll and repeat until you are threw. Other than that i did not need to take it off and it was comfy, and i never needed to stop to get a drink of water, and i knew i was comfy for the beast when it was a requirement. O2X (is a great race, if you get the chance do it) i used it to carry extra clothes (hoodie and hat) that mountain was 18 at the top, so happy for extra layers that day, i was not ready for that cold yet, that is when i decided to get the under Armour (great move, so happy, see last review) and with killington it was great, i was able to put more food than i would need for the world championships, and more salt and mustard than i would need as well. The bladder has a cover over the mouth opening, which is great when it is dragging through mud and the like under the barbwire crawls. It has a drain hole so when you hop out of the water you are not drenched again with the water trapped by the bag. The water drops down and there are a few pockets that do not get wet. When i was at shale hill, i got to the top of an obstacle and did not want to crawl over a cargo net that was small, with the bag on so i threw it down 2 stories, and no issues. This is a high quality bag, that you have to try to break, and the good news is they fix it for you, and in most cases they do it for free ( I have not had to send anything back but i hear great things from people that have done more than i would, like high endurance races and other ways that could destroy most gear) so i have faith.

Bottom line it is worth the price, you will mot need to buy another bag. Only draw back is you have to buy the bladder, chest strap, the strap that holds the tube to the bladder. So you only get the bag, none of the stuff that  camel gives you with the purchase, but this bag will outlast camel, and you can do way more events. So if you want indestructible bag, buy this one!

Under Armour Cold Gear Infrafed Review

I bought these under armour tights and mock neck shirt for the Spartan Race Vermont Beast. I have had several chances to run in them and i am so happy that i did. They make running in the cold so much easier. I have discovered that the do great until you hit low 20's. They did wonderful for me in VT, and the weather in Vermont in September is not warm, the week before it was 18 degrees on top of a mountain 30 min away from killington. Killington was 55 degrees, i had to rool up my sleeves, it was just barley out of the max range for these guys, when i was under the trees they were great in direct sunlight a ittle warm. But my body does run a little high temp wise. On This past Saturday i ran the Fenway Spartan Sprint, and it was in the low 30's nothing like starting in the 7:15 wave and it is below freezing! this outfit works wonders! wile waiting i needed more layers, but when moving i was in a comfortable temperature, i did not notice the cold! I spent the whole day running around the stadium, my first wave was about around 7:25 am, through 5 laps, the final starting at about 2:30, and the only time i was cold was when i stopped moving. I also put a hat on for the later waves, and gloves. I joined The November Project for a run in Harvard Stadium, it was 22 degrees, and i had on a running Jacket, hast and gloves, my legs were slightly under temp, but if i had shorts on i would have been fine, i also had on wool socks (darn tough brand) boot cut so it covered the bottom of my legs. but for 30's and up these are perfect as is. anything lower and then they need another layer, but they are so close to the skin, they are not compression so they are looser, but still close enough that you can easily layer with these with ease. Bottom line if you want to run in the cold, real cold, these are highly useful, and you should buy them!




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Fenway Spartan Sprint 2014

This past weekend was the Fenway Spartan Sprint, this was my second race i did last year. I say this because, it lets me realize the growth i have made in a year, with the right friends, team, training buddies, and support group. Last year i think the race was longer, and my time was 1:0052.4. I was 3201 overall, 2372 in gender 484 in age group (bib #10544) i do not know the overall number of people, but i bet it was well over 10k when i finished around 1pm it was 9535 people. This year i stepped up to elite! it was a blast, placed 74 in elite, 66 in gender, and 21 in age group (bib# 7766) My only gripe about the race was that there were way more people walking in elite than should have been for a 2 mile race. I was also able to get in 5 laps, just a blast all around! i can feel the soreness from what i did, but I am happy that I was able accomplish my goal of 5 laps, and as always making new friends. i hope to keep making strides in my training, and this gives me such high hopes for the future, I wonder what next season will bring to me. All the cool new training devices, techniques, races, who knows, but that is what makes life so fun.

Until next time
Keep Training
Stephen

Fun Runs, and Ultra Training

So this past saturday (nov. 1st) i ran a local ocr, Panic in the Dark, it is a zombie run the day after Halloween, it was a blast. It was quick for me, but i got to see a bunch of cool zombies all through the course and some friends all through the course. They really had a good make up crew, and the people that were playing the zombies really enjoyed themselves, you could tell. after racing that course i am looking forward to the next race they put on, blizzard blast, one of the many cool races to take place in the winter in new england!

Then Today was interesting for me, i have been running through the fels reservation twice a week for about a month now in preparation for my ultra marathon (T.A.R.C. at the fels) i was talked into signing up for this race that will take place on dec. 6th by a friend, who explained no pressure, just sign up and see what you can do, since then i am determined to finish, i will have from sunrise to sunset to do my 32 miles. I am lucky because i have 2 friends that live 5 min from the reservation, that i run with each of hem once a week. 8 mile loop (unless we get lost and add mileage) on top of my own running, and other training. my friends are not new to the ultra scene, i am, and am very thankful that i can lean on them for advice and runs. I mostly run in new balance trail runners that i find on sale, as i cannot afford many other options. i will be sure to post a review on the ones i am using for my runs, after the ultra, and the pair that got me through all the races this year. In the time that i have been training i have been worried that i would not make it across the finish line for my ultra, as it is, i do not know if i will be able to, but i know i will try my best! and i will have plenty of friends running that day that i will be able to share smiles and hugs with that will put me in a good place. i got distracted for a little bit there. Today was an interesting, (but good day) because before work i ran one of the loops around the fels twice, and then in circles until i reached a full 12 miles, because it is better than stopping at 11.4 miles. This made work very interesting, left knee pretty sore, legs sore, hip flexors pretty banged up too. And just in case you are wondering, yes i did stretch a bunch, but my body is still getting use to the distances i am making it do, and in all honesty i am probably not doing the mileage increase correct, but overall for the mileage i am putting down, i fell pretty good about my development. That is one of those things i need to remind myself about as time goes on, and i explore this world of fitness and how little i know, and how much i want to know. Luckily it feels like a natural progression, into a great mystery of a future where i will keep making the challenges harder as i go along my path, nudged by some of my bad ass friends that tell me all about the next thing to keep on my radar.

*Important note to add, untill i was nudged to sign up for my ultra i had never run more than a 10k distance, i can not compare an ocr to a trail run, and just today with the 12 is my new record for just running. and had no intention of doing a marathon either. now however i will be doing a marathon next year amongst many other awesome things

Until next time
Keep training
Stephen