Glen Redpath-KT Tape Athlete Gets 100mile PR

KT Tape athlete, Glen Redpath recently gave us an updated experience with KT Tape and his race schedule for this spring. He is a motivating ultra distance runner and a true testament to KT Tape and its benefits in endurance racing. Here is the latest from Glenn on  KT Tape: One cold night in February while running some quality miles in Central Park I encountered a patch of black ice.  My left foot slipped (I did not fall) and a sharp pain shot up the back of my left leg.  I stopped... something I never do in the middle of a workout.  Then, I tried to run again but felt the sharp pain return.   I had just strained my left calf muscle and  had to walk the rest of the 4-mile loop back to the start.  During this time I devised a plan to rehabilitate myself.  I came up with K-I-S-S.  No not the old school acronym, "keep it simple stupid" but a new one.  Kt tape - Ice - Stretch - and Strengthen.  The first thing I did when I returned to my office was to watch a short online video on the proper way to tape a calf injury.  Before taping I spent time doing contrast baths, hot - cold treatment to get the blood flowing to the injured area followed by some long slow stretching aimed at the lower leg.  Once taped, I hit the gym where I focused on two leg strengthening machines (leg extensions and hamstring curls) where I performed 3X 15-20 repetitions at a very low weight.  After three days and three sessions I was back running.  Slowly at first, then as the pain dissipated I gradually increased the speed.  Five weeks later I was pushing for the win at the Umstead 100 miler.  Thanks KT Tape! Well, Glen did compete very well at the Umstead 100 miler. In the event's 16-year run, only two runners  had ever broken sub-15 hours and the 11 year old course record was set at 14:38. Glen's goal this year was to beat that record and he used KT Tape every step of the way since he was still recovering from his previous calf strain.  He recalls that he felt good and that, "Everything clicked; drinks/food, feet all moved along smoothly only had to run in darkness a bit at the beginning and for three miles at the end." He ran very well, but so did two others. Glenn says, "This young speedster Zach Gingrich (from Ohio) showed up and took a huge risk right from the start (running without a water bottle) I was sure he was going to implode so let him go.  He did not fade not once and decimated the course by running 13:23.  That's not all, a 4-time winner Serge Arbona, one of the guys with a sub 15 hour time stalked me for the first 50 miles before going on to run 14:09.  How ridiculous is that -- I ran a huge PR and a course record only to place 3rd!" Don't be so hard on yourself, Glen! This is a great finish and an amazing feat! 
Here is a listing of Glenn's upcoming races (including another 100 miler): May 1st: Miwok 100k, Marin County, CA June 26th, Western Stales 100 Miler, Squaw Valley to Auburn, CA MONTRAIL Ultra Cup- a series of 11 races throughout the year across the entire USA. The last race is the Western States 100.