Band aids…check
Vaseline…check
Gu’s … check
Water bottle…check
The list filled almost an entire page. This is my checklist, my guide to a successful race. I toss it all onto the floor and then pack it my race bag, checking the items off one by one as they quickly fill the small duffle bag. I will be traveling almost four hours for this race and do not want to forget something important. Something like (I scan my list again)…shoes. My trail shoes add themselves to the bag.
GPS watch…check
Vitamin I…check
Sunglasses…wait….
“Where the heck are my sunglasses,” I call to my wife.
“Let’s see,” she says, walking into the room on her toes so as not to disturb the various piles I have arranged. “Here they are.” She picks up my glasses from the top of one of the piles and tosses them onto another pile.
“Thanks,” I mummer under my breath, a little irritated at my stupidity and a lot embarrassed (although you’d think I’d get used to it by now).
Friday
“So, what do you have going on this weekend?”
It is a typical question for a Friday afternoon, but I find it difficult to answer. I am excited for the weekend, undoubtedly. But I just started this new job on Monday and I don’t really know my coworkers yet. They don’t know me and while we are cordial and friendly…I don’t know that I want to have this conversation just yet.
“I am going to Huntsville,” I say, attempting to parry the question.
“Oh, really? What’s in Huntsville?”
Uh oh.
“Um, there’s going to be a trail run there.”
“Oh, like a 5k?”
“Yeah. Kind of like a 5k. A bit further.”
“Further? Isn’t a 5k like 3 miles.”
“3.1. Yeah.”
“3.1. Yeah.”
“I couldn’t even walk 2 miles!”
Ha Ha. (Courtesy laugh – that one was funny the first 10 million times.)
“So you’re running more than 3 miles? Just how far are you running?”
“31.”
And here come the looks of shocks, the “are you crazy?”, the I-am-in-the-presences- of-a-mad-man response that is fairly typical of runner/non runner conversations about running.
(All joking aside, my coworkers are great people and respect my hobby/addiction with good grace even if they did consider me a mad man).
Saturday
Does anyone ever really sleep the night before a race? I mean, really?
I would have to get there by 6am to pick up my race packet and make last minute preparations for the 7am starting time. This means that I need to leave by about 5am. My watch says 3:46am. Close enough.
I chew on some dry granola while I change into my running shorts and put band aids and Vaseline in the required places. I drink a bottle of water, kiss my wife and go.
The park is completely dark except for one beeming tent. I follow my gut and head towards it to pick up my race packet.
Soon more cars arrive. You can tell which ones are runners by the kamikaze look in their eye. “Yeah, I’m going to run 31 miles this morning,” it says. “What of it?” There are some hardcore runners stretching out. These are the guys who wear shirts that say things like, “Western States” or “Leadville”. I think I’ll line up a ways behind these guys.
The clock counts toward 7am. The race director is saying something about rattlesnakes, copperheads and man eating bunnies but it is difficult to hear him in the open forest air (I may have been mistaken). And then, just like that, we’re off. Trotting casually along the road. So unlike the 5k’s and even half marathon’s where the crowds dash away as if someone just yelled, “Last one there is a rotten egg!” We are going to be at it all day…no need to kill yourself early.
I find myself running with a group of guys. We’ve been hold a steady pace for the last half hour. I ask a few questions in an attempt to strike up a conversation and it carries for a moment but never too long. I decide they must be hoping to save their breath for the final sprints…that or I forgot to brush my teeth this morning. I hope that’s not the case.
We go through the first of two loops in 2 hours and 39 minutes. The first 15 miles are down and I'm feeling great. I asked for some Gatorade at the aid station to help keep my electrolytes in check. The stuff I get is potent...like I almost have to chew it to get it down. My mouth feels sticky and dry after a few sips and I find myself anxiously looking for the next water stop so I get something refreshing in my system. I know it's not good to be looking for a water station less then a mile after the previous one but...
I finally find some water and drink several cups. The next 1.5 miles are mostly uphill...not steep, but the relentless climb that mocks you into thinking you can run the whole thing while slowly and steadily draining your energy supply. I know there is another aid station at the top of the hill...but the hill goes on forever. I feel like I've been running uphill for hours and hours (It has probably been 15 minutes or less). My breath is coming is sharp, heaving gasps when I finally see the lemon-aid stand type set up that means food and water. I put my head down and run to it.
The arguments inside my head now sound like:
"You just ran 19 miles!"I finally find some water and drink several cups. The next 1.5 miles are mostly uphill...not steep, but the relentless climb that mocks you into thinking you can run the whole thing while slowly and steadily draining your energy supply. I know there is another aid station at the top of the hill...but the hill goes on forever. I feel like I've been running uphill for hours and hours (It has probably been 15 minutes or less). My breath is coming is sharp, heaving gasps when I finally see the lemon-aid stand type set up that means food and water. I put my head down and run to it.
The arguments inside my head now sound like:
"Shut up."
"You're almost there!!! Go Team!!"
"You just ran 19 miles. Your delirious."
And I am. Everything is fuzzy and shakey. I need a break.
So I finally listen to that brain of mine and stopped at the aid station.
Experience has taught me that in ultra running there are three systems that you need to keep in check to keep going. I'm not a doctor or anything...but this is my understanding of the situation:
1. Hydration: a constant flow of water into the body is vital in a long run. Especially in the Houston area. For those of you who don't know, Houston is Texan for hot and humid. I knew the forecast said we would hit the upper 80's today. My goal was to drain my hand held water bottle between each aid station but I still felt like I may be running low. Some signs that yell, "You're dehydrated, stupid," are (1.) you've been running for a while and all of sudden you stop sweating (that's bad); another concerning sign is when you've been going for a while and you know it's hot but all of sudden you start to get chills.
2. Oddly enough, you can be too hydrated. In order for your body to put all that water to good use, it needs salt. When you wipe your forehead and it feels grainy (I know it's gross but this is ultra running...it will get a lot grosser before you cross the finish line) you are losing a lot of salt. You may also notice that your clothing shows some white-ish streaks in the areas where you sweat the most. If you don't have enough salt, your body won't process the water it needs.
3. Blood sugar: when your blood sugar drops too low everything gets fuzzy and you feel dizzy. Any attempt to think feels like your taking a final after an all night party. I can tell my blood sugar is getting bad when I can't calculate things anymore. If I see a sign that says "Mile 20" and I am in a 31 mile race...but can't figure out how much farther I have to go...my blood sugar is off.
I drink some coke (to get the sugar levels back up), eat some Fritos (for the salt) and drank about 6 cups full of water. Finally the Earth stopped spinning and the foggy haze lifted from my eyes. It was nice. I grabbed a small piece of Bagel with peanut butter on it in hopes of giving my system some energy for later on. I may be more then half way done but there is still a long way's to go.
I walked for about 5 minutes before I began to trot again. I felt better - good even. I picked up the pace. This was fun again. I passed a few other racers.
"How can run so fast?" One of the guys asked as I jogged by him. I could tell he was hurting.
"I stopped and walked," I called back truthfully.
My good spirits lasted about half a mile, at which point I realized that it would be foolish to try and sprint 12 miles after running 19 already.
I ran, even though my legs were going numb. I ran, knowing good and well that at least two of my toe nails would fall off as a result of it. I ran through the trees, feeling a cool breeze on my face. The sun light flowed through my skin bringing hope and joy - like when the clouds part after weeks of rain. And through the tiredness and pain, I felt desires to join Relient K (who was singing in my MP3 player) in praising and thanking the Eternal Creator for this beautiful forest and the healthy (although somewhat abused at the moment) body I was blessed with. I don't mean to sound preachy, but it you've never been there...you are missing out.
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| Best crew ever |
"Two miles. Piece a cake," I told myself. I ran back up the hill and set my sights on finishing. A group of nature lovers cluttered the trail as I headed into what I thought was my final stretch. They sat chatting in the middle of the trail while their kids played with wild mushrooms and their dogs practiced ritual mating dances. I suppressed urges to feel anger towards these easy going hikers, reminding myself that it's good for everyone to get out and enjoy the park in the springtime. What I didn't know, was that the hikers, their children and dogs were standing right in front of the direction sign that told runners of the Hog's Hunt 50k to continue straight rather than turning left...as I had just done. I ran with that renewed sense of euphoria that in less than two miles I would be done. I ran fast and hard, thinking that now was the time to give it all. There was no need to hold anything back because it was all but over.
Then I saw the water stop. There were no people at the water stop...just some coolers placed on a table. I had passed this same stop about 25 minutes ago. Something was wrong...I looked at my GPS watch and saw that I should be within a half mile of the finish line.
And my heart broke. After running almost 31 miles...I would have to run 2 additional miles to finish the race. All of the racers I had passed in the last 4 miles were now at least one mile ahead of my...and more if they were moving at all.
But, what do you do? I filled my water bottle, turned the music up and ran.
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| Maycie and Cora waiting at the finish line |
My wonderful wife was waiting for me with David, Cora and Maycie to make sure I didn't pass out and die on the way home. So I ran an extra two miles and totally blew my chances for setting a Personal Record at the 50k distance. But in a weird and twisted way I'm kind of glad. I found out that I can go farther than 31 miles and still feel...well, I can go farther than 31 miles. I ended up losing 3 toe nails and spent the next week recovering. Am I glad I did it.
Absolutely.
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| Not much left of me after the race |
