Product Review : Ultimate Direction AK Race Vest (2.0)

My friend and running buddy Jacob 'Jake' Dinardi (http://HikeItLikeIt.com/) and I were talking the other day and thought it would be rad to do some sort of collaborative post since both of us are blogging nuts. We put our heads together and came up with the idea to talk about some hydration vests. BOOM! I'm going to talk about the Orange Mud HydraQuiver Single Barrel and the Ultimate Direction Anton Krupicka (“AK”) Race Vest; whereas, Jake will be covering the Ultimate Direction Peter Bakwin (“PB”) Adventure Vest, and the Nathan HPL 020 Hydration Vest. There are a lot of hydra-vests on the market of course, but this small group covers the bases pretty well from the most minimal all the way up to something an adventure racer would reach for. In this installment we'll review Ultimate Direction's AK Race Vest (version 2). Check it out and let us know what your favorite vest is!

Overview of The Hydra Vests in this Roundup

• Orange Mud Single Barrel: A minimalist vest that offers an alternative to carrying a handheld. (Read more at Dirty Trail Shoes)
• Nathan HPL 020:A small vest that carries a 70 oz hydration bladder and provides just enough room for some snacks or small items. (Read more at Hike It Like It!)
• Ultimate Direction AK 2.0: A small vest with the ability to carry two 20 oz bottles AND up to a 70 oz hydration bladder, or other gear.
• Ultimate Direction PB 2.0: A large vest with the ability to carry two 20 oz bottles, up to a 70 oz hydration bladder, AND room for clothing/other gear. (Read more at Hike It Like It!)

Race Report : Pleasanton Double (10K + 5K) 12/21/2014

I had joined Bob Anderson's, co-founder of Runners World Magazine, UjENA Fit Club some time ago but never ran a 'Double' because of race conflicts.  That is until I signed my 13 year-old son and I up for the Pleasanton Double December 21, 2014 for some father/son bonding!

Group shot with Bob after race. Bob doesn't even look tired!

Race Report : North Face Endurance Challenge (#NFEC), SF 50k, Dec 6,2014

I enjoy reading race reports. And, in most race reports where the runner runs in a race with the word 'Endurance', 'Challenge' or both 'Endurance Challenge' you get to read along as the runner suffers all that makes up the endurance challenge and the usual conclusion that if you are going to attempt it you better be prepared. The North Face Endurance Challenge is no exception to this classification of race and this years race on Dec 6th, 2014 enjoyed a deluge of rain the night before promising to make the challenging course even more so. Here are my results with muddy details to follow.

• Distance = 32.10 mi
• Avg Pace  = 15:56 min/mi
• Time = 8:31:39
• Elev Gain = 5,909 ft
• Elev Loss = 5,915 ft
• Avg HR = 156 bpm, 84 % of Max, 3.8z
• Max HR = 174 bpm, 94 % of Max, 5.2z

One of my favorite race reports was from Ginger Runner (#trainracebeer) after he attempted his first NFEC 50k back in 2012 and many of his observations and tips came true for us in 2014!

The 50 milers started out first 2 hours before us 50kers and were broken into waves (1-4).  By the time I started 50k/wave 4 the trail was turned up mud and later just like GingerRunner noted as a slower runner you get to encounter the elite 50 milers coming back at you on the out-and-backs in a very physical way (more on that later).

One advantage of being in wave 4 was that I was very relaxed and got to take pics before wave 1 went out at 7AM.

Below are two super runners, Sunny to the left,  who eventually finished 1st in her Age Group and 7th overall female (5:10); and Veronica on the right who finished 100 miler Rio Del Largo (RDL) in 26:17 hours Nov 7th and was running NFEC 50k as a recovery run (6:35).

Super fast, super fly runners Sunny and Veronica