The Hay is in the Barn
"The hay is in the barn” is a sports expression that means that preparations are over and the athlete (or team) is ready for the event. The expression first became popular among college football coaches. “All the hay Is in the barn now” was said by the California Bears football head coach and “The hay is in the barn” was said by the Nebraska Cornhuskers football head coach in November 1950. The term became used by runners (especially marathoners) in the late 1990s. “The hay is in the barn” means that the runner is ready for the race; practice runs can be tapered until race day. [source: https://www.barrypopik.com/index.php/new_york_city/entry/the_hay_is_in_the_barn]
5 days to go…
Tour de los Tejas, by Trail Racing OverTexas, is literally within sight now. There is truly nothing left to do except dial in my plan, or rather, what I expect I might be able to control. As any ultrarunner I may craft a plan ahead of time, but I must be ready to throw it out the minute the run starts.
Training Update
I just finished a 13.8 mi run this morning marking my last long effort before the race day this upcoming
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| My final 8 weeks of training, including my 5 peak weeks. |
Friday. In my prior blog I outlined how I wanted to accomplish my final few peak training weeks. So how did it all shake out? I completed my prior 100 mile race at the beginning of December (Loup Garou Trail Run). From there a took a down week of ~40ish miles & then followed up with a 100 km (~62 mile) week. With this ramp I went straight into my final 5 weeks of peak mileage averaging 93.7 miles per week. The final week of this was with an effort at one of my favorite TROT races:
Running the Rose 108km (Jan 23rd). I managed to put forth a great effort here to pull off another victory and lower the course record. This helped build my confidence in my own fitness and validated my prior weeks of training effort I have put in. I am highlighting my current final block of training, but I have been building up mileage ever since the summer and knowing this race was on my calendar. Looking back in my training logs on STRAVA this maybe close to my peak fitness I have ever been to date, at least according the STRAVA fitness & freshness metrics.
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STRAVA Fitness & Freshness metric graph. For what it is worth....at least it gives me some confidence my body is ready as I will ever be.
 | | 2021-01-23 Running The Rose 108km in Tyler State Park. Love these trails as I have run this race the last 4 years we have lived in Texas. I used this hard effort as my last big tune up for my fitness leading into Tour De Los Tejas. My recovery has gone well. Photo Credit: JJustisPhotography | Trail Racing OverTexas |
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Today's Logistics Planning
As this weekend draws to a close and I have to put in a couple more days of work I am taking the opportunity to plan out what I can now. This includes, but is not limited to the following:
- familiarizing myself with the map and potential stops along the route. I will be printing off a small copy of stops to carry with me (for reference), and also provide my family with this information.
- uploading the .gpx file to my Garmin fēnix® 6X Pro Solar
- Starting to organize the essential items that I will be placing in my NATHAN Trailmix 12 L race pack that I will have on me the entire time
- Setting aside my optional gear and spare clothing for my crew support vehicle. (Note: my family may only be able to visit me once per day – if that. I am really relying upon myself this race as almost 100% self-supported, and am treating it as such. Bonus stops and help from my family and/or road angels will just be a bonus).
- ordering some last-minute items on Amazon Prime to ensure I have what I need. This includes some of my favorite snacks and a spare small portable battery pack.
Shoe Update
I have settled on my journey run shoe of choice as the Altra Paradigm 5. I even got a nice Red, White, and Blue color scheme to represent the Texas colors. I thought it was only appropriate for a giant loop in the state.
The Race
Start Time: Friday 10:00 AM February 5th
Start Location: Texas State Capitol (1100 Congress Ave, Austin, TX)
Route Distance: listed at 600 km; .gpx file show ~614 km (~382 mi); actual distance: t.b.d.
State Parks: we visit 7 State Parks along the route! (1. McKinney Falls State Park, 2. Lockhart State Park, 3. Palmetto State Park, 4. Brazos Bend State Park, 5. Stephen F. Austin State Park, 6. Buescher State Park, 7. Bastrop State Park)
Live Tracking: link to be shared on race day, also on
UltraSignup too. Live updates from every runner must occur each day to the race director at 07:00 & 19:00 to ensure runner safety and just general status. Follow along on TROT social media feeds.
Final cutoff: Monday 10:00 AM February 15th
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I will try and post regularly on my
Instagram this week leading up to the race and with any luck I will continue to post a long string of stories during my journey to keep everyone up-to-date. Honestly this is more for myself for documentation and for my wife & kids to follow along. But I am happy if you want to join in the fun and see how I progress. Thank you everyone whom has wished me encouragement thus far.
...tick...
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...tock...
...the journey continues soon....
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