More coffee please...

Kettle Moraine 100 Mile

It started with planning and organzing my 4 drop bags, making sure I got all the essentials like socks, gels, electrolyte capsules, Desitin, Aquaphor, atlethic tape, long-sleeved shirt, lamps, shoes and, of course, my mp3.

After 5 hours and 30 minutes of driving, I finally got to the General Store location where I was supposed to pick up my race packet.  This time my number is 76.  I was greeted by the race director, who seemed very nice and thanked me for coming.  After a quick chat, I headed out to the Nordic Trail, our starting point for tomorrow's race.  I walked around and checked out the trail a bit, then it was time to check into Corssroads Motel.  We unpacked and relaxed for awhile and went to grab some food.  As always, I had pasta, pizza, and Gatorade.  I quickly chowed down the food and, at the same, tried to prepare my things for tomorrow.  Shortly after, I took a bath and relaxed in bed, ready to fall asleep. 

Saturday, June 4th, 4:30 am.  The alarm went off, but I wanted to continue dreaming.  I slept for a few more minutes, then I got up and went to check the parking lot.  I noticed that the weather was starting to warm up, and the temperature began to increase.  At this point, I knew I had to make changes to the drop bags, switching my headlamp from the 63 mile to the 47 mile marker because with this heat, it would slow me down.

Already in the start line and just minutes before the race, I found my buddy, Nate Jackson, who is also competing in the race.  We stood amongst the crowd, waiting for the signal to go off at 6:00 am.  Surely, it did; everyone started out slowly; some even walked.  And, after we all warmed up, I completed my first mile in 10 minutes.  I kept up and greeted everyone I know like John Taylor, who by the way was taking pictures.  As we are in mile 5 at the aid station, I grabbed a banana and continued on to the next station, about 2.7 miles. That took me 30 minutes, and when I got to mile 15, I checked in.  From this point on, the heat became a problem since we were so much in the open with no shades from the trees.  I felt nauseous, and it was difficult to maintain my pace.  I decided to walk for a bit.  After walking for a while, I started to get worried since it was too early into the race to walk already.   

I stopped at some point to pee and, in doing so, it clearly showed that I needed more electrolytes, so I got some more with more water, too.  By 1:20 pm, I reached the first turnaround point, Scuppernong.  I changed socks, ate, and refeuled, then I continued running.  At the mile 47 I decided to stop and took care of my blisters on both feet with the help of Vicky.  Once I felt alright about the blisters, I tried to run faster; otherwise, I would have problems with the second cutoff. 

    
At 10:41 pm, I arrived at the start/finish line, where Nate and I met up.  I was tired and with blisters on both feet, I remained in the race, as well as Nate.  I changed the socks again and put Desitin on my feet to protect the blisters for the 10-mile walk with Nate, which was a long time.  Finally, we stopped, and he said he could no longer go on because he hurt his foot and was also too tired.  For no other alternatives, I began to run again and shortly before 5 am, I reached the 77 mile marker, not to mention I fell as a result of low light and fatigue. From this point to Rice Lake turnaround, it took me an two and a half hours back and forth, and this section was supposed to be very technical.  And once again, the worry for the heat came.  With more enthusiasm than ever, I kept my pace, and it was not until mile 97 that I started to look at my watch again.  When I saw the miles continued to get closer to 99, I felt better because I knew it was only a matter of minutes before I got there to the end.  So I just gradually walked and within minutes I crossed the finish line.  Vicky, who helped me tremendously with the blisters and at almost every aid station, was there waiting with open embers to congratulate, as well as the others. 

With the kettle in my hands, I can say that it was a lot of work to win it.  To sum it up, I can say that I know now more about my body and how it responds to the heat.  Hence, I am going to consider this in my future training, for any minor details, let alone the major ones, can greatly affect me (or any ultrarunner).  As was the case this time, about 60% of all runners who started the race had problems with this issue.  So now, I can finally get some good rest at home.  Hope you enjoyed a little bit of my adventure.

                                     

Med-City Marathon in Rochester

May 29th - Med City Marathon Rochester.

I got to the Mayo Civic Center for the Expo at 3pm.  For 2 hours, I greeted runners as they came to pick up their registration and seek advice and tips from us. I recalled a young man who said that this would be his first marathon, and his goal was to finish, but if he could do it in less than 5 hours, it would be excellent.  I gave him some advice and motivation.  For the rest of the time, I talked to Matt and other pacers. 

Afterwards, I toured the city and explored downtown, trying to find some tasty foods.  I loaded myself with tons of carbohydrates from the delicious pizza and pasta in my hotel room. Then I headed for bed, but I was woken up by the whistle of the train at 4:30 am.  So, the rest of the time, I laid there for awhile before I had to get ready.  At 5:40, I caught the bus out to Byron, where we were going to start the race.  It was only about 20 minutes before I met the rest of the pacers.  A few minutes prior to the race, I headed for the restroom since it was on pavement instead of trail. 

7:00 sharp, we all started screaming with excitement.  The runners, as usual, moved along slowly with me; as a pacer, you just want to maintain your pace, so it didn't matter to be first at the finish line.  At the moment, the weather was nice even though there was a threat of rain in the morning, it soon cleared away.  Around the first mile mark, I looked at my watch to check my pace, and I noticed that it was 25 seconds faster.  I quickly corrected it.  Alongside, there was a girl whom I was quite worried about since her breathing apparatus sounded very agitated; I told her to slow down and breathe through her nose.  Meanwhile, other runners began to go faster than me; however, I didn't say anything because in the last race, I was lacking behind by some 15 miles due to the restroom episode. 

The atmosphere became lively when I caught up to them.  We saw a lot of people cheering and clapping their hands, as we got closer to the finish line.  I passed a runner by the 24-mile mark, and she asked me why I was not tired because I going faster than she was.  I told her that I am, but I had to finish on time.  When I breezed by the 26 mile, I saw the US flag.  I was pretty sure that I was 30 seconds ahead of my time, but when I saw the clock, I ran as fast as I could.  However, the timer won, and I crossed the line a minute after my 3:50 goal time.  What a disgrace...but I still carried on cause I have my 100-mile race in Wisconsin waiting for me.