holy crap i ran a 50K!

Ice Age Trail 50 (50K) - May 9th, 2015

time = 5:34:23

pace = 10:46

placed 4th in my age group (40-49) out of 33

placed 12th in women out of 79

placed 54th overall out of 195

the only good photo in existence - by dave o'brien

fuel:
tailwind (flavorless) in my waterbottle (refilled at aid stations which i supplied)
1/4 of a banana & 1/2 cp mt. dew at mile 6.6
1/4 of a pb&j & 1/2 cp mt. dew at mile 13
finished up with those same portions of banana & mt. dew at miles 18, 22, 27
turned out to be the perfect amount of everything to get me through.  i love tailwind!

top 4 age group finishers ~ missed top 3 by just over 11 minutes.
man, that's A LOT! it was those last 9mi... 
they literally murdered my time. *sigh*

i want to begin this post by saying that i had to drop out of this race last year due to injury.  i never thought i'd be able to race this distance (31.06) in the first place until a little birdie (jeff crosby) kept chirping in my ear on training runs throughout 2013 that he had total confidence that not only was i capable of running that distance, but that i could succeed in killing that distance.  so i started ruminating on it and secretly believing that i could actually do it.  i thought about it for months and then at the end of the year when the opportunity to sign up presented itself i was sitting at my computer at noon on december 15th, 2013 (with everyone else) when registration opened.  i got signed up and it was SO ON!  the race, by the way, sold out in under 2 hours.  this year's race sold out in less than that.  it's pretty insane.  

so yesterday was a redemption race for me.  it was me running this (again on an injury that derailed my training) to see if i could do it.  to prove to myself that i can do it.  really i just enjoy seeing what i'm capable of.

with all the issues i was having with my foot i have hardly run in the past couple of weeks.  i really wasn't expecting to do anything at this race except finish.  i gave up my time goal pretty early on.  my original time goal was under 5 hours (silly me), and then i ran the portion of the course that goes out to horseriders and back.  i realized that a 5 hour or less finish was unlikely and i reevaluated my time goal to be 6 hours.  given all the issues i've been having with my ankle and my gross lack of training in the past 3 weeks i really wasn't sure i'd even be able to finish in 6 hours, but i was absolutely going to try.   finishing was a certainty considering i could walk it in if necessary so that was the C goal.  to just finish... and finish i did!

i slept so badly pre-race night.  went to bed around 9:45pm and was probably up every hour or two.  just couldn't sleep.  my brain was in overdrive.  i didn't think that i was nervous or worked up about the race.  i haven't really been freaking out about it.  i was, admittedly, worried that i wouldn't do well but since i didn't really know what i was getting myself into i had no reason to really be freaked out about it.  apparently, my subconscious thought differently.  

at about 5:30am i woke to a tick galavanting across my forearm.  i promptly grabbed it, jumped out of bed, threw it in the toilet, and peed on top of it.  cuz i'm classy... why else?  we live surrounded by woods and have 2 dogs.  ticks are as a part of our everyday lives as mosquitos are for most people.  they're an annoyance that we see all the time.

i went about my morning routines... ate my before race/long run breakfast, got my gear together, got dressed, and took off for nordic.

when i arrived i picked up my packet from some friendly LPTR faces and went to look for other friends.  the 50 milers were just over an hour into their race so i met up with dave and kevin and we waited for annie, sid, and kevin's sister to run through.  we cheered on the runners and it was very exciting to watch.  the race is such a great experience all around.  there are so many friendly faces and it is comforting to be surrounded by friends.  the start/finish is loaded with people.  a huge crowd gathers to wait and watch.  friends and family hang out all day and the camaraderie of the trail running community is unmatched.  i was really excited to start (especially watching all the 50m front runners coming through), but we had about an hour more to wait.  the weather was cloudy and low 50's at the start and was supposed to get up to 70 by the time i would be finishing.  50's is perfect for racing... 70's not so perfect.  it had rained the night before which was also fantastic because that meant that the sand would not be sandy.  firm wet sand is much easier to run in than loose dry sand... fo sho!  there are parts of this race that have A LOT of sand and as the race wore on that sand dried up and became the bane of my really pained legs existence... ugh.

finally it was time to begin.

i was lined up quite close to the front... not on purpose... just worked out that way.  so i started (of course) out too fast.  my first mile was an 8:44!  ugh... not good.  so i pulled back to try and run smarter.  i didn't really manage to do that all that well and i certainly paid for it in the end as my time got slower and slower as the race came to a close.

the first 13 flew by!  this portion is run on the IA trail out to horseriders and back.  it is SO.MUCH.FUN!  it's single track trail and really fun to see the people running after the turn around.  it was cool to see the front runners run past too.  those guys are super fast!  this trail segment is so beautiful and i feel so fortunate that i get the opportunity to run here whenever i want.  the elevation is tough but the fact that it is so beautiful and bombing the hills is so fun really makes up for all the climbing.  after the recent rains it's all greening up nicely too and was all the more breathtaking for race day.  

i made certain to stop at aid stations and fill my water, drink some soda, and have some food.  i didn't want a repeat of lakefront's disaster due to fueling issues.  worked like a charm.  like i said, the first 13 flew by and next thing i knew i was heading back to the start/finish to begin the first of my two 9mi nordic loops.  

dave was waiting for me at the start/finish and told me i was 4th woman which was amazing to hear!  it definitely fueled my fire and i hugged him goodbye and ran on.  i was running really strong until mile 23 when things took a turn.  my hip flexors began to hurt something fierce.  it is notable that my left ankle (the one that's been giving me hell for weeks) was absolutely fine throughout.  weird, right?  so my hip flexors are freaking out and screaming in agony so i'm doing a bit more walking at this point and turns out that my 3rd toe on my left foot is screaming at me too so the downhills are hell which is also slowing me down.  at mile 23 two women pass me.  i am now 7th woman.  not so bad and i push on...

before i finish the first 9mi loop one more woman passes me and i'm now 8th woman.  *sigh*

i finally make it back to the start/finish and stop to refill my water and i suddenly need to cry.  the urge is so strong and overwhelming that i was having the most difficult time trying to speak and the volunteers were concerned.  they fill my water and i croak out that i'm fine and have no idea why i'm crying.  i run on.  i stop at the bathroom a few feet past the aid station to pee and take off flying as fast as my pained and exhausted legs/feet can carry me.

just an FYI:  it is impossible to cry while running... so keep running. 

the next 9mi loop is all mental.  i try to smile because that seems to help.  i probably look like an escapee from an insane asylum.  i am alternately running as fast as i can (which on the flats is still an impressive - to me anyway - 8-9ish min miles) and walking/sobbing/hyperventilating breaks.  every time someone passes me i tell myself that i don't care, and that all i want to do is finish.  i continue to count down the miles as i finish them.  

7 miles left, 6 miles left, 5 miles left...

this is how i get through the last 9 miles.  

this is me (chafed armpits) with marty at one of the last aid stations on the
final 9mi loop.  i basically wanted to die here ~ photo by mariya sorensen

when i'm less than 2 miles from the finish i get passed AGAIN by the last woman who passes me.  she also happens to be in my age group successfully shutting me out of top 3.  bummer...   again, i mutter to myself how i don't care and that everyone and their mother can pass me at this point because i just want to lay down and be done.  

then i hear the crowd.  i see this guy at the top of the hill leading into the finish and he is clapping like a mad man!  he is amazing and i decide that i LOVE him.  i thank him for being there because he is why i am now running my finish in.  he is why i feel strong again.  he is the reason that i can do this!  he is a godsend!

i run into the finish strong and as fast as i can (it wasn't very fast).  as i cross the finish i bee line for water and then i begin crying.  i need to get away from people so that i can cry in private without people asking me if i'm ok so i head to the parking lot where a couple people ask me if i'm ok.  i find a tree and squat down.  i call my husband.  they were supposed to be at the finish but were late due to my son's soccer game. i am bawling now.  it is just so overwhelming.  i am so tired and the feelings are so big.

finished! couple of blisters and probably going to lose a toenail

this race is top notch.  the volunteers are AMAZING.  seriously i cannot say enough good things.  they ask what you need when you run into their stations and are there with everything.  they have vaseline for your parts AND paper towel to wipe off your hands after you've slathered all your parts with more vasiline than you ever thought you'd put on your parts.  the race is so well put together and so fun (except for those last 9 miles... those were torture.  those were not fun).  the race director does a fantastic job and i feel so fortunate to have had the opportunity to share in this experience.  the 9mi loop is breathtaking.  there is a section of trees that are towering and the ground is covered in pine needles.  it is so beautiful.  if i wasn't racing and trying not to die i would have stopped to take pictures of it.

i never thought i would be able to race this far.  i anticipated finishing in 6 hours so i am very proud of my sub-6 finish.  it was the hardest race i've ever run.  it definitely tested my mental toughness as well as the limits i put on my body.  turns out that my body doesn't have any limits unless my mind imposes them... so there's that.