Ozark Hills Trail Running

The Bass Pro Fitness Challage

2011-10-26T18:18:00.001-05:00

Everyone loved my shirt

Here I am before the race 20 pounds overweight, with a swollen up ankle from a fall during my long run last weekend just hoping I can survive today's race. I dropped down from the 50k to the 25k event becuase my training didn't go as I had planned.

I Haven't written much about my training becuase my training has not gone that good. I'm old and a few injuries and pains kept me from my workouts. I promise I will fill you in on the race soon.

Needless to say I got a few trail runs in with my longest being 10 miles, which is 6 miles shorter than the 25k distance I will be running today. I think I can make it if my ankle holds up. Jami wrapped it for me but it is hurting and very swollen.

The left leg is hurting

Rod Jetton- KC's on the Current, Old Reps. Float Trip

2011-08-10T09:33:00.000-05:00

Back when I was a State Rep. a few of us legislators would get together with our wives and go on a float trip once a year. We usually floated the upper Current River, which is a beautiful river to be on. A few weeks ago I was having dinner with the Coopers and Mayer’s and they said hey we need to go on our float trip. So I asked them for dates and started organizing.

We decided to go on the southern Current where my boss, Stan Schultz owns a floating business called KC's on the Current. I invited all the old gang along with Kenny Jones son Caleb and new Rep. Steve Cookson. We had several takers, but by the time the trip came around, we were down to only three of us. Tom Dempsey, Carl Bearden and me. Molly would have come but she didn’t want to be the only girl on the trip.

Stan, Tom, Rod and Carl in front of Stan's Shoal Runner

I guess we should have started planning earlier and more folks could have worked it into their schedule. We came into Doniphan Sunday night and Stan showed us around KC"s. Then we had dinner at a very good Mexican restaurant in town. We stayed at the Days Inn and decided to hit the rack about 9:30. We had just turned in when a huge storm blew in and the rain started falling hard.

Watching the rain from out hotel at 9:00am

I went to bed hoping it would be hot and sunny in the morning. When I woke up it was cloudy and soon it was pouring down rain again. I told Stan well I don't think we will be able to go floating so we headed over to the coffee house for breakfast and enjoyed talking about the old days and current issues till 10:30. After almost 30 days of 95+ weather and no rain, it looked like today was the day to end the drought.

Weather map showed it was supposed to clear up by noon, so we decided to get our gear packed and head down to KC's and take our chances. The great thing about the Current River is that its spring fed, which means the water is clear and cold, which makes it hard to jump in the water on a cloudy day. Kathy Schultz (Stan’s Wife) drove us up to the put in spot about 7 miles upstream. The van ride was quite a thrill in itself. She had no lack of confidence on the curvy Ripley County roads and when it changed to gravel it seemed the bumps almost bucked us off the road.

As we unloaded our raft and tubes the sun started shining but it was having a hard time getting through the clouds. Patrick Schultz (Stan’s Son) had a kayak and was going to help guide us down the river. He said it would be sunny soon and he was right. You should never doubt an old river guide who knows the area like Patrick does.

If you have never been floating in Missouri you are missing one of life’s greatest pleasures. No matter how stressed and busy life is, there is no better way to spend a hot Missouri day than floating slowing down the Current River. It's best to take a cooler with plenty of drinks and food so you can pull over on the inviting gravel bars and take in nature, while you soak up the sun and relax. Anytime you’re hot you can jump off your tube and cool down.

The Southern Current is a great place to float because the stream just lazily flows over the clear gravel bottoms. You can see the crawdads and sucker fish swimming below you and sometimes when you’re quite a big smallmouth will meander by. There is very little danger from strong current which allows you to enjoy the trees, cliffs and rock outcroppings along the way.

Stan the man cooking!!

Carl, Tom and I had a 4 man raft aw well as a tube to float down in. We stayed up out of the water the first mile or so while we prayed that the sun would break through the clouds. Thankfully, young Schultz was right- the clouds parted and we had the perfect sunny weather we had hoped for. Since it was a weekday we also had the whole river almost to ourselves. The whole day I think we only saw 7 other floaters and a few fishing boats go by. I guess the morning rains scared them away!

Stan brought the hamburgers and hotdogs up on his Shoal Runner about 2:00 and started up the grill on an inviting gravel bar. We pulled over and joined him, Representative Cookson and his wife Joy for a nice BBQ right on the river. Stan did a great job of cooking and we had a good visit with them before we pulled our raft back into the water for the final few curves.

We let the current pull us south towards Doniphan and I must admit I was a bit sad when I looked up and saw the KC's take out sign up ahead. All too quickly we were pulling the boat out of the water and visiting with Stan, Steve Cookson, and several other locals who had gathered at the dock to swap stories about the fishing and happenings on the river that day.

Stan gave us a ride back up to the headquarters where we dried off and changed cloths. I said by to Tom and Carl as we talked about what the other guys missed by not being there. I have floated with several different outfitters on most of the beautiful rivers in Southern Missouri and KC's is a first rate operation. There slogan is floating the way you like it, and I liked it allot!

Next year we will plan ahead, make reservations and get more of the old gang together.

Rod Jetton- Table Rock Lake Swim

2011-08-08T23:25:00.000-05:00

I decided to try a swim to give my leg some more rest. I asked Jami if she wanted to go out on the point by the dam and watch me swim. She said yes because she likes to go out there and read her Bible and watch nature. It was a cooler night and I went down to where the ropes go across the water to the emergency spillway Schultz and Summers Engineering worked on.

I eased in the water and started the crawl stroke. That’s lasted about 50 years and I was tired. I kept it up but was getting winded. I’ll make this post short because it’s not that exciting. I side stroked, back stroked and dog paddled over to the other side. It took 6 min.

I rested for 2 min then started back. That took a bit longer, 9 min, but I made it. I was thinking about entering a short triathlon that Branson is hosting with a 450 yard swim. I hoped my swim was 450 years but when Dad looked at it the other day he thought it might be 100 yards across which leaves me 250 yards shy of the race distance.

Does it look like a football field to you?

The worst part is that after I was done I was completely drained. I mean I felt good, but I was tired. My whole body was just used up. I hate to think about having to bike and run after that.

Rod Jetton- Bike Ride in Branson

2011-08-08T23:13:00.000-05:00

Branson and the Lake behind me

Since my leg was hurting I decided to get a bike ride in. I took my mountain bike because the road in front of my house (76 east) is VERY narrow, and if I had to go off road I wanted the mountain bike. The first three miles were all downhill to the Branson Landing. I went through a roundabout and towards Hollister. Then up the big long hill to School of the Ozarks (Hard work U). Did I mention this hill is long? By the time I was at the top I was over 5 mile into the ride.

Then I turned on a residential road that went down to Lake Tanycomo and I mean it went down fast. It was nice going down but I knew coming back up would not be easy. The road followed the lake for awhile, which was nice before I again had to start climbing. This hill was not as steep but it was long and I thought I reached the top twice only to find that I had another long stretch of uphill. The final level was the steepest and my legs were shot. I hate to admit it but I got off and walked it up that last part.

I then rode over to the scenic overlook on 265 and stopped. That was 9 miles and a great view of Branson. I stopped and rested took a few photos and started back. The long ride down was easy and it went fast. Before I knew it I was headed back up the very steep uphill. I quickly got off and walked up the hill and was feeling really bad. It was hot and I was hurting.

After I finally made it to the top I coasted all the way back through Hollister and to the landing where my final 3 miles were almost all uphill. Again I got off and walked the steepest parts and slowly rode in my easiest great the flatter uphills. I made it home jumped quickly into the pool and cooled down. My camelback was dry because this was an afternoon ride and it was hotter than I expected it to be on the bike.

Over all it was fun ride and good for my legs to cross train. My calf felt a lot better after the ride.

Rod Jetton- Morning Trail Run

2011-08-08T22:45:00.000-05:00

Clouds before I started at 5:45

Two weeks ago I got a morning trail run in on the scenic overlook. It's the 5.2 mile loop I ran when i started down at the Log Church. As always it was hot but there were a few clouds in the sky. I started running down hill and felt good but about two miles into the run my calf tightened up and was killing me. I don't know that it is badly hurt and I guess it was just a cramp but instead of running two laps I just ran one.

As I finished it started raining which cooled things off, but my calf hurt to bad to run. I ran it in 1:03 which with the leg slowing me down was not that bad. But I really need to get my milage up if I am to have any chance of finishing a 31 mile race in October.

Rain hitting the parking lot

Sun shining through the rain

Rod Jetton- 1 Insane Trail Race- Finishing Award

2011-07-31T13:55:00.001-05:00

I forgot to show the cedar medallion we revived for finishing. It says survivor and that is exactly how I felt.

Thanks and take care,

Rod Jetton

Rod Jetton- Boundary Waters Day-3-Part 1, Catching Fish!!

2011-07-23T13:06:00.000-05:00

I’ve wanted to write about this day for awhile but I have been very busy. Each morning Dad would get up early and take Courts out in a canoe and they would fish. I would get up, find a nice rock to sit on, read the Bible and thank the Lord for such a beautiful place. It seems like when there are no phones, TV’s, or radios, it’s easier to talk to God. It just seems like he can hear you better and I know I can hear him better with all the cares of life on hold.

One of Grants fires in the rain

After that, I started pancakes while Grant built a fire. Like most young boys, Grant loved building fires. He hunted wood, chopped wood and kept the fire going even in the rain. Dad and Courts got back about 9:00am and we finished breakfast.

It was an overcast day and the wind was blowing out of the west. Dad has always repeated that old wives tale that says, “Wind from the East, fish bite least. Wind from the West, fish bite best.” Well I never really thought much about it but this trip to the BW has me believing.

We paddled up across Bald Eagle Lake, which is the lake we were camped on, and then we turned to the east and fished up the north side of that big cove. We went right back by our first campsite on this route. We picked this location because Dad said that back when he brought Mom to the BW’s, they fished that cove all the way back to Bald Eagle creek and that Mom caught more fish that day than ever before. Dad also added, “I caught my biggest northern ever at the end of this cove.” That had Grant, Courts and me all excited and ready to hit that cove!

The purple line shows our route from our campsite to Bald Eagle Creek

The great thing about fishing with Dad this year was he let me sit in the front of the canoe while he sat in the back. He likes to catch walleye, so he would let his line out and troll while he paddled. This allowed me to fish without having to paddle, unless he got hung. I was living the life of Riley up at the front!!

We rounded the first outcropping and turned into the big cove and I started fishing. Dad had given me a hard time about bringing a big dip net I bought, because he said in all his trips he never brought a dip net. I’m an optimist so I packed it in anyway. The only problem with this net was the handle had a release button that had to be pushed to get it all the way out. I had it in the canoe but I had not released the handle yet. This would prove disastrous!!

Another major concern was my lure. That morning when we were rigging our poles dad had me put on the red and white dare devil he caught his big northern with over 20 years ago. I told him I didn’t want to use that one, because if I got hung and lost it, I would never hear the end of how I lost his best BW lure. He insisted so reluctantly, I put it on while I said a prayer that God would not let me lose this lure.

We fished about ½ mile along the shore as dad paddled, but had not caught anything. We came to a small inlet that had two big rocks sticking out with some water in the middle between them. It was the kind of spot I just knew a big fish was in. I was a little worried about the cast because occasionally I would over cast and hit the rocks and dad would rib me for scratching the paint off his best lure.

I carefully flipped the pole and made a great cast with the dare devil landing perfectly between the rocks where my dream fish was waiting. Sure enough, WHAM, something hit that lure and the fight was on! I started reeling him in not knowing how big or what kind of fish he was. I could feel the front of the canoe pull to the right as he took a run out to open water. Courts and Grant were also to our right and they watched the whole episode.

Just like the old days dad was coaching me and by this time I knew he was big. He was getting closer to the canoe and dad said, “Wow, he is big you better get the net.” As I was reaching behind me with one hand trying to grab the net he jumped out of the water and that’s when we could tell it was the biggest smally we had ever seen. The small mouth bass get big up there and they have a brilliant gold color to their bodies. Even though it was a cloudy day I can still remember the brilliant shine to his scales as he leaped out of the water on the final jump.

I was reaching for the net, he leaped, we saw how big he was, the hook came out and he was gone. I just sat their staring at the now calm water that was being thrashed by my monster smally just a second ago. It was so sad and it happened so fast. Courts chimed in about how big he was and dad said, “Wow that would have been the fish of the trip, if you would have caught him.”

I just sat their disappointed gazing at the water, but after a few seconds I quickly made another cast between the rocks… nothing happened. He was gone and I had missed my chance. Of course, they now started ribbing me about my net not being ready and how I had let the state record smally off the hook. I just kept quiet, kept casting and made sure the net was ready for the next one.

I think I’ll finish this post later. There was a lot of action on day three and it will take more than one post to cover it all.

Thanks and God Bless,

Rod Jetton

Here is a short video of our campsite the first night. You will hear Grant chopping in the background! ha ha

Rod Jetton- Boundry Water First Fish

2011-07-22T07:22:00.000-05:00

I was re-reading the posts and trying to find spelling mistakes, which for me is like looking for 4 leaf clover in a field of clover. When I realized I wrote the day BW post and didn't include a photo of the first fish caught.

I'm working on Day 3 which was the day we caught the most fish and I caught my monster, but here is the photo of the first fish. This big northern was caught right off a rock ledge where our first campsite was. It was when we were going scouting for a new campsite.

This was the first fish caught

Oh, I almost forgot to mention that I caught the first fish. ha ha

Rod Jetton- 1 Insane Trail Race Outcome

2011-07-19T20:07:00.005-05:00

Camp Galilee

When I first saw the name of this race I wondered why they called it 1 Insane race, but after running it I totally understand. First of all who starts any kind of race in July at 5:00pm? I don’t know what I was thinking when I registered or why I thought it would be cool by 5pm, but I was wrong. In July the sun is not even close to going down at 5pm, as a matter of fact it was still quite high in the sky and I am slightly sunburned from the “late” afternoon race.

I made a wise decision before this race and stopped at a gas station to use the bathroom. Turns out there were no bathrooms at the race so I avoided the problem I had at the July 4th half marathon. For the record it was 102 degrees when we started this painful session at 5pm. As soon as I got out of the car to go check in at the registration table I started sweating. I checked in at 4:43, changed into my running shoes and put on my camelback. Unfortunately, I didn’t double tie my shoes and when the race started they came untied and I had to stop about 50 yards into the race to retie them.

I really didn’t worry about that much because I wasn’t running for time, but I thought how that would have driven me crazy back in my college days. Needless to say I was in last place at that point.

So can you tell what language this is?

Soon after the start, another aspect that drove many of us insane were the course markings and turns. I have no idea what language they were written in but it was not English. This race took place at Camp Galilee so I assume it was Hebrew, or maybe Greek, but I had no idea what they met. While it seemed like most of us were nice Christian runners, I don’t think we had many Hebrew Bible scholars in the crowd because we all got lost (except for me- Marines are never lost just occasionally disorientated). I knew things were not going as planned when I met the fast runners coming towards me about a mile into the race.

The reason I thought this was strange was because the race director had told me it was a loop course. Now, I have run a lot of races and I have run hundreds of loops. The one thing I know about as loop is, you don’t meet people coming the other direction than you. They call that an out and back course. But I just ignored them and jogged along trying to tell myself to slow down and not start to fast with all the 5k runners like I did in the 1/2 marathon.

About this time we came around to the same trail we had been on which again seemed odd on a loop course. We all stopped looked at each other and asked questions and tried to stay calm, relaxed and not freak out. Racers hate not knowing which way to run even when we are just “jogging.” A girl and an old guy who were behind me ran by and headed up a steep hill and said she thought that was the way. So I took off and followed them. She had a fancy Garmen watch on and some of those compression socks so I thought she seemed like a trail veteran and probably knew this course.

After catching up with her and taking several minutes to catch my breath enough to ask a question I inquired if she had run this course before? About that time we hit a turn and she stopped and I could tell she had no idea where she was going. Fortunately, there was a cooler with water there and I noticed an empty bottle trail to our right and said this must be the way.

Just around that turn the lead fast runners who I had met earlier were coming down a separate trail and rejoining the race. They were not too happy and I have no idea where they had wondered to, but I’m betting they ran a long way off course, so it all seemed fair. They quickly passed me as they mumbled about having no idea where to run. When you’re a fast runner competing for a place, things like that bother you more.

The course continued on and crossed over itself two more times and I kept jogging around the “loop” meeting several runners all wondering which way to go. I took some satisfaction in thinking at least I would know the course on the second lap. I walked the uphill sections to save my legs, but kept a steady pace over the rest of the first “loop.” The girl and the old guy who had gray hair were just in front of me, but I couldn’t catch them until the last part of the first loop.

By this time I was thinking if I slowed down the sun would sink lower and it would be cooler for the last lap. Then I came to the turn around and ran all the way back to the starting line, which is what the race director told us to do at the beginning, but as I turned around I noticed the girl turning around at the water table 50 yards away. As I jogged back up to the water table he said, “You could have turned around here.” I muttered, “That’s not what you said at the start.” He replied, “My bad.” It took me 32:00 minutes to run the first lap.

I was thinking bad things right at that point because the sun was beating down on my head after taking the wrong path and wondering around and now this “girl” was in front of me. I quickly caught her and the old guy and passed them but the effort tired me out and I had to walk. When they passed me back he exclaimed, “Were half way done.” I added, “That I, was only a 1/3^rd done.”

They were very nice and we helped each other find our way around through the whole race and it helped me stay motivated trying to keep up with them. I made my way through the second “loop” and only got turned around once. I never caught back up to the girl and the old guy but I was dramatically slowing down and it was happening quickly. I changed my strategy and was now only running the downhill sections. I know it’s sad but you have no idea how hard it is to carry 214 pounds through a trail in 102 degree heat.

You may remember when I registered for this insane race I mentioned I may run the 4^th “loop” if I felt good and get a 20k in. What a laugh that is now. All I could think about was stopping after two loops. I wanted to quit so bad. I was hurting and the only thing that kept me going was the fact that I had never in all my years not finished a race.

When I came around the corner to the starting line I saw the “girl’ at the water table but the old guy was back by the tent. I was a bit delirious and had my uplifting Christian music on so I can’t say for sure, but I think she was trying to get him to run another “loop.” I walked to the water table got me a cold bottle of water and gritted my way down the trail for my final “loop,” wondering if it would be my final act in life.

Then the nice “girl” with the Garmen watch and compression socks jogged by me and said something that I think was encouraging. At this point I was hurting so bad I really didn’t care, but I have to admit that when I saw her stopped about a mile up the trail I felt a bit more macho. She was bent over and I asked, "Are you ok." She said, "Yes, but a few miles ago I was puking my guts up." I responded, "Do you need anything," and she said, "No, I'm fine just resting." So I jogged on for as long as I thought she could see me and then started walking again.

Each step was hurting at this point and I had to stop half way up the hills just to catch my breath. The water in my camelback was hot and there is nothing worse than sucking down plain hot water in a race. I was grabbing a cold water bottle at each cooler and drinking all I could but it wasn’t enough.

At this point the 20k runners were passing me but they were hurting too. The first three looked strong but after that they were all suffering. One kid passed me right at the end but he stopped and visited with me a bit. He told me his longest previous race was only a 5k. We walked in together and he is fortunate to be young because in that heat running a 20k for the first time should have killed him.

This is me hurting!!

I’m proud to say I walked the whole way in and finished the race. When I stopped I was seeing spots and felt dizzy so I fell down on the grass and drank water. I don’t know how long I was there but they gave out all the awards and door prizes and I finally got up used the hose to cool down, wash off and slowly walked to the car.

The “old guy” and “girl” were married which probably makes the old guy not so old and helped me feel better. Unfortunately, the “girl” was older than I thought, which makes me feel worse, but man was she in shape. They were very nice and I talked with them and several other top runners. It made me feel good that everyone was talking about how hot it was and some of the guys planned on doing the 20k and 15k races but stopped at the 10k. I guess I should have too.

They also told me about the 50k trail race in October and said that course is a lot harder than this one. They mentioned it had a 7 mile uphill section. It’s a 25k loop that you run forward and backwards. I wonder if when they say loop they mean a regular loop or a 1 Insane “loop?”

Even though I have been joking a bit about the heat and the course it was a fun race. We runners like to suffer and then brag about it. The race director was a wonderful guy who had some great awards and each of us got a cedar medallion cut from a cedar tree from the trail proving we had completed the race. He promised to have more signs up next year, and I would recommend some chalk, but the course was really a fun one. There were a few hills but it wasn’t too bad and the rocks and creeks made it exciting. The website said, "Be prepared for water in the creeks if it rains," and I would have thanked the Lord if that was the case this year, but in July I doubt next year they will be wet.

The best part was the money they raised went for missions and everyone from racers to volunteers to spectators were helpful and friendly. The scary thing is wondering how I will ever hope to finish a 50k race on much steeper hills by October. I can only hope the cooler weather will help and I’ll be 20 pounds lighter! I suffered but had a great time and can’t wait to come back next year, hopefully 20 pounds lighter and better acclimatized to the July heat.

Rod Jetton- 15k Trail Race Tomorrow

2011-07-15T19:27:00.000-05:00

I found a trail race tomorrow in Eldorado Springs, Missouri. It's the 1 Insane trail run to raise funds for missions. It doesn't start till 5pm so I will have tomorrow to rest up from a very long week. It's three 5k loops. They have a 5k, 10k, 15k, and 20k race going, but I chose the 15k which is about 9 miles. I didn't want to be dead like the 1/2 marathon a few weeks ago. If I feel good I might do the last lap just for fun. Keep me in your prayers!!!

Take care and God Bless,
Rod Jetton

Rod Jetton- Sycamore Log Church Long Trail Run

2011-07-11T17:55:00.000-05:00

The Sycamore Log Cabin Church where Jami and I were married

I had been thinking about this weekends run for two days. I knew I needed to get more actual trails in, but with the heat and my weight, I was worried. I decided to run the 6 mile trail that starts at the scenic over look on Hwy 76 just before you get to the Sheppard of the Hills tower. This trail drops, turns and climbs over to the Sycamore Log cabin Church and offers some very technical trail running.

I woke up at 5:30 am with a heavy fog hiding the sun that was trying to break through and light up the morning. I was thankful for the fog, because it kept things cooler. It was 70 degrees outside so I read a few Bible verses, and said my prayers, loaded up on water, and drove over to the Church.

A look at the fog blocking the sun from the scenic overlook.

Once there, I put my camel back on and started jogging down the road to the trail. It was further than I remembered it and after 10 min I went across the creek and onto the trail head. My original plan had been to try and do two loops on the trail, which would have been 12 miles. This extra mile+ down to the trail had me re-thinking that plan. I decided to see what I felt like after one loop.

I sure felt strong running along the creek on the trail, but then it turned west and went almost straight up a steep hill. When you run trails around Branson they are seldom flat. The hills are steep and this one was no exception. I decided to walk up and save my legs. Now, when I say walk, I don't mean some slow strolling pace. I was power walking up that hill and huffing the whole time. Sometimes, on really steep hills when you are overweight, fast walking is just a quick as jogging and it takes allot less energy.

I made it up that hill and kept going at a steady pace as this trail is a steady uphill from the creek to the scenic overlook on Hwy. 76. I reached the top in 28 min. I had run this trail last year starting at the top in 55 min, but I was thinner then. I was happy with the time and thought maybe I could hit 1 hour since I had allot of downhill going back. I was still thinking about running two laps at this point.

Going down the trail I made good time and then I hit the switch backs that go up and down and started feeling a bit tired. I hit the start of the final mini-loop, which had a very steep hill and walked up it. After I got to the top of it I stated picking up my pace on the down hill hoping I could break the 1 hour limit. Somewhere on that back loop, which is the easy part of the trail, I started fading. It was a gently rolling trail but I was getting tired and slowing down.

I finally started the final steep downhill part and reached the bottom in just over 1 hour. I considered just doing the mini three mile loop again, but after remembering the long steep uphill that awaited me, I decided to just jog back to the Church. While it took 10 min to get to the trail from the church, it took 15 to get back to the church.

I rested and stretched a bit, then drove down to the creek and took a dip in the clear cold water. That was sure refreshing. I was tired but the good news is.... I wasn't dead like I have been after the last few weekend runs, and this was the most trail miles I have included in any my runs so far. Seriously, a trail mile in Branson is just harder than a road mile.

My left knee is hurting some and I'm resting it but my goal is to do 2 laps on that course next week. I may start up at the scenic overlook this time though. My weight has dropped some but I don't think I will notice it until I get under 200. Now I am down to about 12 weeks to train and completing a 8.5 mile run with 6 trail miles in it is a far cry from running a 50k race on some steep hills in October.

Until next time take care and thanks for reading.
Rod Jetton

Rod Jetton-Day 2 in the Boundary Waters

2011-07-06T22:27:00.002-05:00

I am writing this after the fact of course but I did take good notes about our activities. As I said, our first day we had perfect weather. No wind, sunshine and a perfect day to arrive and set up camp. Did I also mention that i caught the first fish that day? Well that night it started raining and the temp dropped and our tent leaked. Dad and I shared his old tent and this was the same tent that leaked back in 1982 when he brought me to the BW.

This time I had a nice iso mat to sleep on and I only used a Pancho liner because it was so warm. My sleeping bag was rolled up and didn't get wet. In 1982 we were on the lake fishing and Dad wouldn't let me put my poncho on because he said I could get dry cloths when we got back to camp. Of course when we got back to camp my bag and cloths were soaked. This time all my stuff was dry but Dads bag did get wet.

Not only did it rain that night but it was pouring that morning. We hung up a tarp to keep us dry but the wind was blowing hard, which made the rain impossible to avoid. We couldn't build a fire and times like that make camping miserable. That's when Dad said he thought he was getting to old to come up there and hike in. He said I would have to bring everyone up next year. I was thinking I don't want to come up and sit in the rain next year. Thankfully the rain stopped but the sun didn't come out and the wind started really blowing.

The good news was how the wind dried everything out and blew the mosquitoes away, but the bad news was it kept us from fishing. We tried to go out, but only made it to the island about 1/2 a mile from our campsite. When you were behind it the wind was blocked and it was nice, but once you were unprotected from the wind it got rough on the water. And when you have 2 guys who weigh hmmmm lets say alot in a canoe with big waves its a bit scary.

So we stayed on shore and took a nap with no mosquito's bothering us while we enjoyed the afternoon. We did fish from our campsite but didn't catch much. The Courts, Grant and I found a trail and hikes to another cove where the wind was not blowing and did some fishing. We didn't catch much but Grant did catch the biggest lake perch on our trip in that cove. After that Grant got hung and lost the only lure we had so we decided to hike back and Courts thought he knew a quicker way through the woods that would come out on a different trail.

I don't know if you have ever hiked through woods that have never been logged and probably have never had a human walk through them but it is rough. Tress were blown over everywhere and the moss was thick and spongy. There were pockets of stagnant water where finally figured where all the mosquito's came from. While we wondered around on this "short" cut we were sweating and being bit and Grant was getting tired. After quite a while we ended up on a cove where we could almost see our campsite and we took another cut through the woods, got off track, overshot our campsite and ran into the same trail we stared our journey on.

Fortunately it was a short and easy walk back to our campsite where Dad was wondering where we were. We had left him sleeping when we went on our hike and he had no idea where we were. Once home we started dinner and ate fresh caught fish some grilled potatoes and more red beans and rice.

Finally, we read Proverbs and had our devotional then turned in about 9:00pm when the sun went down and hoped for better weather. Here are two short videos, one of us in the rain and one showing how big the waves were.

The Freedom 1/2 marathon was hot!!!!

2011-07-05T19:15:00.003-05:00

My whole family came into town for the 4th of July weekend so we had 28 guests visiting. I woke up Saturday morning at 5:30 to get to Table Rock Dam in time for a 7:00am race. I took some time to pray read a few Bible verses and eat a banana. I was going to use the restroom, but was running a bit behind and thought I'll wait till I get down to the race. I needed to register and it was about a 20 min drive to the Dam so I filled up my camelback and headed out while everyone was still asleep.

When I pulled into the starting area I was amazed at all the people. They were running a 5k, 10k and 1/2 marathon but I really didn't expect this many people on a hot July 4th weekend. Now, I was planning on using this "race" to just help me get a long run in for my training. I quickly registered and picked up my race t-shirt and got my iPhone and music ready. Then I realized my mistake. The line to the two bathrooms was long. I mean really long. It was only 15 min to the race start and I counted all the people in line and estimated that if they all took 1 min I would get in there by 7:12.

Being a Marine I found a quite secluded place behind a bush and took a "natural break" as they say in the Tour de France. Unfortunately, I was needing to go #2 and thought I'll just stop at the bathroom down at the campground during the race. This course was a gently rolling paved trail that strolled along the lakes edge for a little over 4 miles. The 5k runners had a turnaround at the 1.5 mile mark and the 10k runners did two laps of that. Us 1/2 marathoners, went out past the Branson Bell and the campground all the way past the Marina and then turned around. We had three laps to complete.

The whistle blew and I took off with the rest of them at what I thought was a nice slow pace, but with all the 5k and 10k runners in there I realized later that I went out a bit to quick. It was a very hot and humid day but the first lap seemed so easy to me. The nice thing about the course was you got to see all the other runners twice each lap. When I started the second lap I was about 20th and told myself I needed to slow down and stay strong for the third lap. I started getting passed some and being passed even when you know your slowing down takes something out of you.

I was feeling tired and very hot and all the ladies and old men were passing me and I was feeling dead. But I kept at it and made the turnaround and started back. The race workers were very encouraging and kept telling me I looked good but I knew they were lying!! ha ha

I finally finished the 2nd lap and started on #3. I asked one of the workers if the 3rd lap would be more downhill than the first 2 and he almost dragged me off the course fearing I had heat stroke. I was only joking with him but joking kept my mind off of how slow I was running I mean jogging and how bad I was hurting. By this time I was walking up the steep hills and I just wanted to finish this race. (For some reason each lap the hills got steeper. ) I knew if I started the 3rd lap I would have no choice but to run back since my car was parked at the starting area.

After being passed by several more runners the turnaround finally appeared. It was a bit of a hill up to it but I made it up and was headed home. At this point I was just trying to push the pain out of my mind. The sad thing is I was barley running. I mean this was the slowest pace I had EVER run ANY race in my life. I kept pushing and went by the campground then the Branson Bell and finally into the finish shoot.

I'm embarrassed to say I ran a 2:04. I saw that 2 hours was coming up but there was just no way for me to speed up and break 2. I was dead. That's a 9:30 pace!! It made me come to the realization that I am out of shape and overweight and I have to do something about it. I drank water all day and slept and was hurting bad. The next day I drank water and slept and was soar. Finally on Monday I started feeling normal but my legs were soar.

If I don't drop at least 20 pounds this 50k trail race is going to kill me in October. I wouldn't recommend running a 1/2 marathon with little or no training but it is a good way to suffer and motivate you to get back in shape. Hopefully I will do better next week.

Take care,

Rod Jetton

Rod Jetton- Rain and Cooler Weather Speeds Me Up!

2011-06-24T17:34:00.004-05:00

My eyes opened and my alarm clock that shines the time up on the ceiling said 4:07. I was hot and needed some water so I got up, went to the kitchen, and then my mind started racing about all the work related things I had to do today.

I sat down and my laptop and started working and then the storm blew in. There was lightning and thunder and rain but by 6:30 it seemed to be over. I started thinking this would be a great morning for a run. So I got my shoes on, filled up the camelback and took off running.

My pace was faster than last week and I was really wanting to perform better than I had then, hoping the cooler weather would help. On the way down a big hill about 2 miles from the house I tried to step off the side of the road because a big truck was headed toward me, but slipped in the wet grass and went down. I scraped up my hands in several places on the asphalt and they were bleeding, but I told myself that trail running was about falling down and not letting it bother you. Even with the fall, at the three mile mark I was 1 min ahead of last weeks pace. I ran up the big hills in town and through sunset park, then down to the trail. It was wet and after my fall I took my time and walked over the rougher parts. I noticed I had a lot more energy than last week at this point.

Looking up some of the stairs

Looking down some of the stairs

At the top looking down at the Lake

I did walk up all the stairs and even took a few photos to show how steep it was. The first two are of the steps looking down and up. The last one is at the top looking down to the valley and Lake Taenycomo below. At the top I took off down the trail and really felt good. I was 5 min ahead of last weeks time at the trail head. I ran over to the office which included one very long and steep downhill and a massive steep and long uphill which I briskly walked up. I then kept up a good pace to the office and got there at 1:29. I was tired but felt MUCH better than last week.

Me at the office after the run

Over all it was a good run and gave me hope that I can finish the 50k race in October.

Rod Jetton- Bring on the Heat

2011-06-20T09:21:00.002-05:00

I'm doing the math and it looks like I have 14 weeks until the 50k. That means only 14 more chances to get a long run in. So I planned Saturday for my long one. I didn't measure the course but we have a 2 mile trail in Branson that goes down a steep cliff along Lake Taneycomo and back up again.

My plan was to run from my house to there and then follow Hwy. 76 back home. All in all it would be about 4 mile to the trail then 2 miles on the trail and then another 4 or 5 back home. Not a real hard day for a in shape runner but for an overweight guy just gearing up it seemed like a good way to hurt.

My first mistake was not getting up at 6am and starting. I waited until 8am and the sun was already starting to heat things up. I filled my camel back up and started off with a very slow suffering pace. Now Branson has some huge hills and the first three miles were all downhill to the Lake and then i jogged along to the trail and it started getting rough. I love running trails but man are they hard. The terrain isn't level, the hills and inclines are steeper and i was already tires from my jog.

One interesting fact about this trail is the 316 steps built in 1938 that lead to the top. I love running this trail but today i walked up the whole way and was fairly proud of myself for not stopping and taking a break. At the top I jogged to the trail head and was tired enough that I planned on calling my wife to come and get me and calling it a day. I had already run 1 hour and was tired but for some reason at the top I decided i better get used to pain and so i kept running. Well at least jogging.

Fortunately Hwy. 76 is downhill so it wasn't that hard to shuffle along the sidewalk. By this time it was hot and I was drinking water as fast as I could. I was getting tired and hurting but kept telling myself 50k would be very painful and I better get used to it.

I made it to the start of the big 3 miles of uphill back to the house and started walking. I called my wife to come and get me but no answer. So I kept walking up the hill. By this time my fat legs were chaffing and i had more pain that just my lungs, legs and body!! I ran out of water and started feeling dizzy but i kept going. About that time my wife called back and came and picked me up saving me the pain of walking the last mile.

It took a shower lots of water and nap to "kind of" recover from the run and I felt sore but good Sunday. It's sad to think how far I have to go to be able to finish a 50k trail run this October but hopefully i can cut some weight, get up earlier and beat the heat. It took me all day Sunday to get re hydrated but I'm feeling good today and can't wait till next weekend and my pain session. maybe i can finish this time.

Thanks and take care,

Rodney

Rod Jetton- Keeping Fit In The Boundry Waters

2011-06-15T09:16:00.003-05:00

Well I took a break from trail running during our fishing trip to Minnesota. The good news is I definitely got in some workouts and i am way out of shape. The boundary waters are a group of natural lakes on the Canadian and Minnesota boarder where you have to hike in and they do not allow engines on boats. It is beautiful and the water is so clear and clean you can drink it right out of the lake.

Posing with the timer on

What the rules mean is that you have to carry everything you need for the week including your canoe. Our first hike or what they call a portage was a 280 rod jaunt (about 8/10 of a mile) into the Boundary water Canoe Area (BWCA) from the road. It took each of us two trips to get both canoes and all the gear to the water. I carried our 64 pound canoe on my shoulders with a food pack on my back for my first trip then I jogged back and strapped two packs on the front and back of my body with several other things in my hands. Needless to say that was a good workout but I was pumped up and full of energy with all the excitement of getting there.

Dad with all the gear he brought with him

We then paddled all the way through three big lakes to our campsite. It was about a 4 mile trip, which was another good workout. First, there was Little Gabro, then Gabro, then into Bald Eagle. There were some rapids going into Bald Eagle and with all our gear in the canoe we had to get out and carry it over a few rocks and into Bald Eagle Lake. Of course once we got to our campsite and unloaded everything we decided we didn't like it, so we scouted around and found a better one and had to reload everything and transport it over to the new site. All in all, it was a full day of hiking, paddling and loading gear. If you look at the center and bottom of the map below you can see the lakes we were in.

Map of the BW with all the lakes showing

That was day one and I will continue this tomorrow. Thanks and take care.

Rodney Jetton

check this link out for more photos

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150213692999693.329284.560729692

The Ohlone 50K: Where Dreams That You Dare To Dream Come Back to Haunt You

2011-05-31T12:46:00.000-05:00

The Ohlone 50K: Where Dreams That You Dare To Dream Come Back to Haunt You

Memorial Day

2011-05-31T09:58:00.003-05:00

Well my plan to take a long bike ride this weekend didn't work out, but its not all my fault. Sunday, I didn't wake up in time to workout before Sunday School and I ended up helping my wife clean condos in the afternoon. Then my sister came and Jami's family came to visit plus the Coke a Cola 600 was on, so I skipped my bike ride Sun. Monday for some reason I was tired and slept till 8:30. I never sleep that late so I guess I was tired. I took Ruth's family on a short hike which gave me some exercise and then helped Jami clean condos again.

After that we had to drive to St. Louis and pick up her son Kodey at 10:00pm. That put me back home this morning at 2:30am. I did do some push ups last night when we were waiting for him to meet us but I didn't get much exercise in on memorial day 2011.

This morning I got up at 6;00 am and put a short bike ride in. It felt good since I ate a huge ice cream cone last night and felt terrible when I woke up. I'll work today then head out on the road and hope to get a good run in tomorrow morning. My weight has edged back up since I'm eating again and I have not been as healthy as I should be.

Today is the last day to register for the Bass Pro trail race at the cheaper price. I'm going to do it. The good news is its a 50k race not a 50 mile race so that's only 31 miles. Surly, I can get in good enough shape to finish that!!

Thanks and take care,
Rod Jetton

First Trail Run in 2011

2011-05-28T15:57:00.005-05:00

Ok, for all the experts out their I know this will sound crazy but today was my first trail run. It was rough. I have a 6 mile loop here in Branson with some difficult hills that took me 1:05 to run today. I had to walk most of the steep hills.

Here is this years background though. I was in great shape last summer and running that trail in like 50 min during the heat. Then fall hit and Christmas and the cold. My running stopped and I ate way to much then hunting season and graduations and vacation and I won't say how much I got up to but this week I was back down to 210 which I felt was light enough to try the trails.

Weight makes a HUGE difference on trails. The hills are steeper than roads and I can feel each pound. I need to get down to about 190 and then I will run a lot faster and feel better. So my goal is to get some runs in, ride my bike some and get the weight off so I can get up the hills. Then I can start going on longer trail runs.

I only have about 12 weeks till the Bass Pro trail race in September so I have to get my mileage up. I will try to take some photos and keep you up with my progress.

Thanks and take care,

Rod Jetton