Editor's note: This is the second part in a series of stories following Granite Bay ultrarunner Greg Bomhoff's preparation for the Badwater Ultramarathon in Death Valley on July 11.

Out the door for my Sat. long run. Back in 5 hours ... I just like saying that.

With that update to his Twitter followers at 7:25 a.m. on April 30, Greg Bomhoff grabbed two 26-ounce water bottles and took off from his Granite Bay home for a 30-mile training run.

True to his word, he returned five hours later, buoyed by what his watch told him.

It took Bomhoff only four minutes longer to complete the run than it did last year when he was deep into training for the Rio Del Lago 100 Mile race, which he won. And this was coming after a full week of running and cycling. Just three days earlier he put in a 16-mile morning run, plus 45 minutes on a stationary bike, then cranked out a five-mile run with a 3,200-foot elevation gain in that evening.

All of which made Bomhoff breathe a bit easier. It had been a tense month or so for the veteran ultrarunner, who knows he must be in peak condition come July when he tackles the furnacelike 135-mile Badwater Ultramarathon from Death Valley to Mount Whitney. Not only is it a personal goal, but Bomhoff is running to raise money for Franklin Elementary School in Loomis.

A nagging Achilles tendon strain, however, had interrupted his grand training plan, forcing him to virtually stop running for five weeks. He substituted the stationary bike and hot yoga, plus his weight training and core work. But for a runner, there's nothing that can replace the fitness of running.

Like any distance runner, Bomhoff, 43, has had his share of small injuries over the years. Nothing that a few days off, some ice and maybe strategic stretching didn't solve. This, however, was different: a dull ache that persisted even after rest and pampering.

He saw Dr. Kevin Kirby, a Sacramento podiatrist.

"I went in asking, 'Do you do cortisone injections in there?' " Bomhoff said. "He said, 'No, just get off it.' And he also said, 'Welcome to your fifth decade of life. That's when (injuries) start happening.' But, to me, it was new and a little concerning."

The down time seemed to help, though, because Bomhoff is back on his high- mileage, base-building plan. His long weekend runs, between 30 and 40 miles, have been solid, and he plans to throw in a 60-miler one Saturday before beginning his taper in late June.

"I feel like I'm racing to catch up, but I'm quietly optimistic because the long runs have gone pretty darn good," he said. "I should be doing 100 miles a week, but I firmly believe in the endurance and the experience I've gained over time."

During his enforced running sabbatical, Bomhoff began the first stage of his heat training: hot yoga. He and running buddy Jason Harper have been going to Bikram Yoga Folsom, sweating it out in a 110-degree room to acclimate and improve flexibility.

His first experience was, well, humbling.

"We were these fish-out-of-water new guys," Bomhoff said. "We figured, 'Hey, we're endurance athletes. We'll be OK.' We basically were just rolling around in the back in our own sweat.

"When everyone else was doing their quiet pose, we were grabbing our water bottles. We were getting called out for doing things wrong, 'correcting' us. We were so wiped out. Your heart rate is through the roof. I was very surprised."

The real heat will come in June, when Bomhoff lowers his weekly mileage and increases the heat training. He plans to join a health club and sit for hours in the 180-degree sauna. He and his father, Ron, will make a road trip to Death Valley to run portions of the course. And he'll dress in multiple layers for runs when everyone in Sacramento is wearing tank tops and shorts.

But, for now, he's just happy to be back running ... for five hours at a time.

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