Beastialis Barkeatis

     I signed up for the Finger Lakes 50 miler in January shortly after it opened as it was highly recommended and sounded like a good first one. I mean what Vermonter can resist the theme "Don't Let the Cows Out" and running through cow pastures? I had planned a marathon 6 weeks before, and then squeezed in my first triathlon 3 weeks after that. So, that left very little time for serious training, but I did get in a wonderful 38 miles a couple weeks before race day, running with some amazing ultra runners and trying to gain as much knowledge from them as possible. Mike discussed the importance of eating early and monitoring nutrition throughout the run, while Deanna advised me on pacing. We discussed the fact that Elena had won the race the prior year. Given that some of my shorter race distances were similar to hers, I dreamed of keeping up, but Deanna advised me otherwise, stating Elena's superhuman abilities. So I set a goal pace of 12-minute miles or 10 hours.

     Originally, my long-time running buddy was supposed to come with me and pace me for the final loop of the 3-loop course. However, he had father duty, and John, being an amazing father, couldn't give that up. I was a little disappointed, but knowing Elena was still going despite her injury, planning to cheer her heart out, I asked if I could join her. However, I was out of luck for a pacer, as she wasn't able to run yet. The bonus was I had the pleasure of breaking her camping virginity. We set out mid-day on Friday, got stuck in lots of traffic, but got there with plenty of time to set up the tent before dark. Shortly after that, Hiroshi and Bette arrived. We mingled with the other racers. Elena chatted with old friends, and I made new ones. 

     I went to bed early and unnecessarily set my phone alarm for a wake-up call. I slept ok, but the ground was a bit hard, so I tossed and turned. Then before I knew it, the sound of a banging pot woke me up (no phone alarm needed). It was 5am, the race was set to start at 6:30am.It was time to get up. I crawled out of my sleeping bag and put on my race wear, brushed my teeth, and went to pick up my number...49. I looked at it a bit, hoping that it didn't mean anything, that I wouldn't stop just shy of 50. Oh, well, there was not time for those thoughts; it was time to get everything else ready. I set up my hydration vest and drop bag. Opted to eat a chocolate muffin instead of my usual peanut butter sandwich and took a sip of coffee, hoping my belly would be ok with the gluten (I just couldn’t resist the chocolate). Then I waited in the outhouse line. That poor outhouse got a lot of use over the weekend, and really smelled quite foul, but I have to say it was better than a porta-potty!

     We walked to the start of the race on a dirt road, got our directions, and then the cowbell rang. It was time to run. The group was both 50k and 50mi runners. After setting into a pace, I started chatting with a few runners, trying to get a feel on who I could run with. There was a really long downhill that I knew was going to hurt on the subsequent loops, but a nice aid station at the bottom. I grabbed some electrolyte tabs and M&Ms. Then off to an uphill. I eventually was running with a girl named Heather. I can't remember much about her, except her Fleet Feet tank and pigtails. She said she was aiming for a 9:45, so I stuck with her. I knew I had no idea how to pace myself, as I always run way too fast. She stopped at aid stations quickly and I followed. Much of that first loop was a blur, but I do remember my favorite parts. Somewhere in the middle of the loop was a wide-open pasture with an amazing view. I was so tempted to sit next to a quaint little apple tree and relax in the hay, taking it all in, but had to keep running. This was my thought on each subsequent pass. I never wanted to stop just to stop running, but instead just to take in the beauty, to absorb it and never let it go. The next favorite spot was the last aid station before the end of the loop...they had watermelon, which was quite refreshing in the heat.

     I was really worried about the heat. The forecast was for the high 80's to 90's. I don't run well in the heat. I've never taken electrolyte tabs, but tried to take 2 at every couple of aid stations (there were 5 on a 16.5 mile loop). I also drank as much as I could. I really tried to pay attention to my hydration and nutrition early, just as Mike had advised. Besides the M&Ms, I also ate some Fig Newtons and half a peanut butter sandwich on that loop. I was feeling quite good.

     As I approached the end of the first loop, I planned my mad dash to the outhouse. My luck, it was empty. Then I ran over to my drop bag, where Elena was waiting to help me. I downed a gel and took another half of my peanut butter sandwich in my hand. I had completed that loop in about 2 hours 45 minutes, far faster than my intentions. My previous running companion, Heather, had also gone to the outhouse, but I set out running before her, so I was now alone. I quickly caught up with Nancy, a fierce Master's runner. I passed her on the long downhill, but she was still talking to me from behind, yelling a bit. I thought, “This is silly. I have someone to chat with and don't really need to pass people this early in the race.” I asked what her goal was...8:30. Well there really was no need to pass her since that was much faster than my goal, so I leveled back with her and tried to hang on. We powered down the hill skipping the aid station. I was still holding onto my peanut butter sandwich, but had looked forward to a cold drink, versus my warm Heed. Oh well, it was nice to have running company. Nancy is quite the runner, showing her tenacity by running 50 miles with a broken toe. She lives in the area and runs the trails regularly, so knows the course well. I listened to her stories and tried to burn various course markings into memory, as I knew my Garmin would die eventually and I wanted to be able to gauge the miles.

     Nancy and I ran together for much of the second loop, stopping at the aid stations only a couple of times. She relied on her water bottles, electrolyte tabs, and gels. I tried to choke down my peanut butter sandwich, but my mouth was dry making it hard to swallow. It probably took a mile to get it down. At one of the stops, I was beginning to feel a little low, probably around the halfway mark. I grabbed a cup of Coke and that did the trick, my legs almost instantly felt energized. I stopped a few times to pee, getting a bit concerned that I was peeing so much, wondering if I wasn't hydrating properly in the heat. However, there was no time for worries, just time to run and do my best to stay hydrated. I would then have to work a bit to catch back up with Nancy, as I didn't want to give up the company at point in the race. When it was her turn to water the trees, I waited for her to catch back up, but she never did. So, I was on my own, but almost at my favorite aid station.

     I got to the last station of the loop, took some electrolyte tabs, Coke, and watermelon. They were playing music and in such great spirits. It definitely helped me power through to the end of he loop. I headed up the hill, knowing I only had 2.79 miles until I would see my friends. To my surprise Elena was at one of the ponds along the way. She squinted asking, "Is that Jamie?" I said "Yes!” ecstatic to see a familiar face. She simply replied in a firm KGB style, "You better keep going! Don't stop now!" She hadn't expected me so soon, thinking I would slow down on the second loop after going so fast on the first. Her reaction gave me the inclination that I was doing well, better than I had intended. I kept running. I ran straight for the outhouse again, hearing Bette yelling for me. Once done, I ran out to my drop bag. Heidi was there to help me get what I needed, while Bette filled up my hydration pack. She exclaimed how well I was doing; telling me the first place female had just left. I was in disbelief that I was doing so well, but it put some fire in me to keep going and hunt her down. I set out running again as quickly as possible, but not before an encouraging fist bump from my new friend Chip, who had already finished his 25k. I remember being surprised to see him. I was quite discombobulated and not thinking straight. Just after leaving, I realized that I completely forgot to apply Glide to my back. I had taken off my shirt and was sure my pack was going to cause some painful chafing. Too late now, I would have deal with it after.

     I had done a close to even split on the second loop, but knew the third would be slower. I hit the steep downhill and thought my legs were going to die. I knew I just had to get to the aid station. It seemed never ending, but I got there and took some Coke and electrolytes, with a bonus of ice for my bra. That ice was so helpful. Nancy had keyed me in on it previously. My stomach was really queasy and I couldn't eat anything. Sips of my warm water made it worse, but chewing ice chips did the trick, cooling me off and wetting my mouth. I headed up the steep hill and powered along. At one point, I heard noises in the pushes, saw a deer, heard more noises, and wondered what was in there. I looked back to see a baby deer. I almost stopped to watch, as he was so cute, but had to keep moving. I was beginning to pass other runners doing the shorter distances, I tried to encourage them and they yelled back to me enthusiastically. This last loop was tough! I tried to break it down into sections.

     I got to the aid station that I knew I would eventually double back on. I took some Coke and kept going. My watch had turned off at mile 36, so I couldn’t tell how far I had left to go, I only had my Timex to tell me my overall time. I thought I heard one of the volunteers say that he would see me again in just over 2 miles. Well those 2 miles lasted forever. I think in reality it was about 4 miles, at least that’s what Nancy had told me before, but my mind was fuzzy and I didn’t recall that conversation as I ran. All I thought about was getting more ice. I was feeling really nauseous and like I couldn’t keep anything down. When I finally got to the station again, they had no ice…DAMN! The race director’s husband was there and said he would have to arrange to get some more. Unfortunately that wouldn’t help me at that moment. I leaned over the table and drank some cold water. I asked how far I had left and was told 7 miles. Well, that was better than the 10 or 11 I thought, so I set out running, knowing I was almost done. My thoughts were running too. If he was going to get ice, I should have asked him to buy me some chocolate milk for post-race. Oh well, I was too late again. Just keep running.

     The next point to look for was the beautiful pasture. I was so happy when I finally got to it, but wasn’t able to enjoy it as much as before. I had to focus on keeping my feet moving. Now was the hunt for the last aid station, which I constantly thought was coming up. I came up to an aid station manned by a group of what appeared to be young college students. Again I leaned over the table and exclaimed some profanities of exhaustion. They were eager to help, but I had no idea what I wanted. I had totally forgotten about my desire for ice. Mostly out of habit, I took some more electrolytes and Coke. I was on some form of autopilot. I asked about the first female, not expecting much information, as no one else at the previous stations really knew how far ahead she was. But these kids knew! They said she was about 10 minutes ahead, but she looked really tired. I said, “But I’m not doing so well either.” They replied, “No, you look good! She’s really hurting.” They thought she might have fallen. This gave me hope that I could catch up. I had perpetually been 10 minutes behind her. They said I had another 10k to go. Man these miles were going slowly.

     I set out running again, quickly having to walk a bit in order to settle my stomach. I think it was shortly after this point that I approached another steep hill and opted to walk. As I was going up I saw a woman riding a horse. I exclaimed, “I would rather be doing that than this”, and she said, “This is more fun!” Then I dreamed about asking her to give me a lift, wondering if anyone would notice. I thought about what Elena had said, telling me not to stop and set out running again. Elena’s words really kept me going through this final loop, as well as knowing how well I was doing. Every time I slowed down, I looked behind to see if anyone was coming, hoping no one would catch up to me. I just kept running and running, trying to remember where that final aid station was. Eventually I got to another pasture area that was bordered by tall grass and bushes. The heat was radiating from the ground. It was slightly uphill and long. I didn’t think I could go on. I yelled at myself. “Why are you doing this? This is the most painful thing you have ever done? What made you think this was a good idea?” I needed a short break and walked a bit. The nausea was really bad. Then I saw something blue. I though I was seeing things. I’ve heard of people hallucinating on these ultra runs. But I started running anyways in hopes that it was what I thought it was. As I got closer, I realized it was no hallucination; it was that final aid station. Wahoo! They had no watermelon, but they had ice!

     Only 2.79 miles to the end of the loop, followed by a half-mile baby loop. I headed out, trying to run as much as I could. The nausea forced me to walk a bit after each sip of water. I would walk and eat an ice chip, remembering Elena’s words. It actually hurt more to walk that run, which was helpful to keep me going. I passed the pond where I had previously seen Elena, and dreamed of jumping in with the other swimmers. I passed another pond and finally saw some campsites. At this point I never stopped to walk again! I was almost done! I ran to the end of the loop, hearing the cheering. I was confused and yelled for someone to direct me, pleading for Elena to guide me on the final baby loop. I was mentally shot! She joined me and I began to sprint. I don’t think she was ready for that speed with her broken foot, but she kept up and encouraged me straight across the finish line. I ran my first 50-miler race in 8 hours 47 minutes and 59 seconds. Overall I was the 3rd finisher and second female. I was still in disbelief!

     I had run right through the finish, not stopping, so a volunteer came up to me with my medal, a beer opener, and wooden cow award (I didn’t realize until later that it was a cow, and was quite confused as to why they awarded me with a pig…I was delirious). I didn’t have much time to relax, as a reporter started questioning me. I did my best to stand up and answer her questions, when all I wanted to do was sit down with some watermelon and cold water. When she was finished, I got what I wanted and then headed to the pond for my ice bath. It was glorious. Swimming with the frogs. I sat there for a good 30 minutes, until I was too cold to stay any longer. Then Elena and I headed back to camp so I could change and eat. Celebrating with old and new friends, waiting for Hiroshi to finish. Relaxing. This is why ultra running is so fun! This is why I wanted to run 50 miles! 

And the winners are...1, 2, 3...