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