Fri Feb 10 2012
Featured Video:
Frankfort Face: Alan Jacques
Get the Flash Player to see this player.
For Alan Jacques, a 5K, marathon or an Ironman triathlon isn’t a big enough challenge – he’s eyeballing the “granddaddy” of them all - 100 miles.
“I like to take stuff to the extreme,” he says. “My wife said she knew the first time I did a marathon, it wouldn’t end there.”
Alan is a 34-year-old firefighter-paramedic for the Frankfort Fire Department. He ran his first marathon in Chicago in 2004 - only because he thought it was a good way to keep in shape.
Alan completed the 26.2 miles in less than five hours, and by the next week, he was already thinking about the next race.
He later competed in an Ironman triathlon in Louisville, which includes a 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike race and a full marathon.
Despite struggling, Alan finished in about 13 hours – well ahead of the minimum qualifying time of 17 hours.
He completed the swim and bike race without trouble, but got sick about 16 miles into the marathon.
“That was the low-point.”
He felt better after sipping broth and was able to run the last 10 miles. “I wasn’t going to quit.”
Another recent contest included the 200-mile Bourbon Chase relay from the Jim Beam distillery in Clermont, Ky., to Triangle Park in Lexington. It’s designed for teams of 12, but Alan joined a team of six.
“We wanted to run more.”
The team got even smaller when one member got hurt - Alan and the others ran about 40 miles each. They wore headlamps for the overnight stretch. “That was a little bit different experience,” Alan said.
The course also took runners to Buffalo Trace Distillery.
But now Alan’s focusing on completing a 100-mile “ultra” trail race. Races longer than a marathon are considered ultra.
Trail races differ from tradition because runners compete on paths instead of asphalt. Alan said that has appeal because he studied outdoor education in college and was a hiking and rafting guide.
“It’s solitary. It’s just you and the course.”
Alan’s favorite is Louisville’s Otter Creek, now closed for budgetary reasons. He says the eight-mile loop is beautiful and very “runable.”
He’s made two unsuccessful attempts to complete 100-mile trail races in Illinois and Alabama. In Alabama, an injury kept him from making the cut. He ran about 60 miles in 14 hours before he was eliminated.
The course in Illinois was “notoriously brutal,” Alan said, with lots of ups and downs and thigh-deep creeks. Plus, rain soaked his shoes in the first mile. Alan ran about 50 miles in 15 hours before being eliminated.
“Times vary greatly from trail to trail,” he said. “It’s a lot more about trail conditions than times or mileage.”
His next attempt will be a course in North Carolina that’s flat and less challenging.
“The 100-mile race is the monkey on my back.”
He trains three or four days a week at local parks, including Salato and Capital View. He says Frankfort’s fortunate to have many good running trails.
“Frankfort is fantastic, but a lot of people don’t even realize it.”
Alan trains after his three children, 4-year-old daughter Kaja, 2-year-old Cyrus, and infant Zane, go to bed. Jody, his wife of seven years, limits Alan to running one event per month to stay in shape.
She attends as many events as she can and is very supportive, Alan said.
“She’s very gracious.”
His ultimate goal is to compete in the Western States Endurance Run, a 100-mile trail race in California.
Proper nutrition and running shoes are important for success, Alan said. He’s got a dozen pairs of trail running shoes, which have aggressive treads, Gore-Tex waterproofing and other features.
“I’ve probably got more shoes than most girls.”
He offered advice to anyone who wants to compete in a 5K, marathon, Ironman or ultra race. There are lots of training plans available online and that’s what he used for his first one.
Alan suggested that runners get fitted for racing shoes and plan their nutrition carefully. Most importantly, he said new runners shouldn’t be intimidated.
“Run, walk, do whatever you can to be successful.”
“Frankfort Faces” is a series that highlights people from within the Frankfort and Franklin County community. Each feature follows one of the city’s most unique personalities and includes a story, photos and video, which can be found by clicking the TV icon attached to the story online at state-journal.com.
Comments
By Posting to this site, you agree to our Terms of Service Be polite.
Inappropriate posts may be removed.
State-Journal.com doesn't necessarily condone the comments here, nor does it review every post.
Login above or Register to comment.
0 Total Comments Home | Back
Copyright Frankfort Publishing Co., LLC 1995-2011. All Rights Reserved.
Content may not be republished without the expressed written consent of the publisher.
Content may not be republished without the expressed written consent of the publisher.
Dix Communications