100K Race report
The 100K race report.
Training- I used the same method for my last 50K- big weekend followed by smaller weekend. I feel this worked well. My biggest weekend was 18/28.
Nutrition- I had started experimenting with real food because I get tired of bars about 5-6 hours in. Discovered my favorite is spaghetti with olive oil, salt, and garlic in a ziplock baggie. Carbs and fat. Also like onigiri balls- rice with something like pickles or sweet potato inside in a seaweed wrap. I also have 2x 500cc of Tailwind in my front pouches with 200cal in each and drink those over 3 hours and I put water in the back of my vest on hot days.
Supplements- coffee in the AM, Beet juice in the beginning and half way. Sports Legs every 3-4 hours. And I started some Tylenol about 12 hours in.
Aid stations- out of the back of my car- planned a 3-4 hour loop. I had everything I might need bc I had no help. The things I ended loving most- running shoes for when I switched to the paved bike trail at the end, Coke for a few swallows each loop, Twix- one each loop as a reward, hot soup- one thermos cupful of miso each loop, and a chair and beer for the end!
The run- started at 0941 with a slow easy pace, walking the little uphills and when I ate. I knew I’d be running at night and there was no advantage to starting early and having more hot daylight. So Inised the time to sleep instead. Was supposed to be hot with a 50% chance of light rain at 4-5PM. That turned into thunder and heavy rain at noon for an hour or so. Wasn’t hot! Ran though the day and headed over to a different park for my third loop. It was closed, but I went in anyway. Only lasted an hour bc of the bugs, the giant climbs, and the slippery rocks. My phone (and Strava) were on airplane mode and if I fell and cracked my head open, my husband would never find me. I checked in with him every couple of hours for safety.
I wanted to be back in familiar territory for the night portion. I’ve only run alone at night one other time and it was a race with people. I had one light and a back up light, plus three compact chargers. This night running was creepy. Bats darting (but I like bats). I saw an owl fly across the path. A deer scared the bejeesus out of me when it leaped right in front of me- I almost had a heart attack. The eyes. The eyes creeped me out. My headlamp would reflect off them in the woods as I looked around. Then I realized they were close together and near the ground, so probably not anything that would eat me. Figured out later they were raccoons. So many raccoons. They were in the trees as well. Very cute.
OMG. The spider webs were the worst. All night, ever 20-30 seconds, I’d have to wipe a spider web off my face or arms. I finally gave up at the last stop with 11 to go and changed into my road shoes and headed out to the bike path. So much better!
I ran until about mile 40-Ish. Then I shuffled. And somewhere around mile 50, it turned into a fast walk.
I finished at 0446. 19:05
At no time was I crabby or wishing I weren’t out there. I was ready to be done, but never wanted to quit.
I finished with a beer in a chair, called my daughter to say good morning. She and another friend were willing to take my call in the middle of the night if I got in a bad place.
I came home and took a shower and a nap. Then ate some lunch. I could barely walk that day. Monday was better and by Tuesday I felt normal except a twinge in my right buttock. Recovery was daily walks, easy bike rides, and lots of stretching.
I’m so glad I did it! What a feeling of accomplishment.
Thank you all for all of your support And advice through this process!!
Comments
Nailed it with authority and enthusiasm. It cant get any better than that. Congratulations!
YES night running can be spooky at times when you are alone , there are lions and tigers and bears oh my , no seriously its like the noises and movements become amplified and the brain can get a little jumpy. I have a good friend who is a very accomplished Ultrarunner and fully capable of finishing a 100 , who DNF'ed The Stagecoach 100 because he completely freaked out and came apart during the night section when he was alone, and bailed at the first available aid station.
Congratulations @Leslie Knight Great accomplishment and to be able to do so with smile is awesome!
Outside of spooky eyes and spider webs, were there any unexpected surprises (both good and bad)? Were you able to stick to your plan?
Maybe the only surprise was that I wasn’t hungry the last few hours. I was really good about staying on top on my nutrition and hydration and the the last 15 miles or so I wasn’t really hungry. I watched for the signs that I needed to eat (bad attitude, flagging energy), but they weren’t there. Maybe because I wasn’t in a deficit and I was fast walking by then? Not sure.
Congratulations @Leslie Knight . Very inspiring. I did 50k on my own and now you got me thinking about a 50 miler. I wish I had some trails without ticks.
@Leslie Knight you are such a gangster! Congrats!
Great job @Leslie Knight! Very inspiring!
Just huge! To keep the motivation and commitment to train and complete during this odd time makes this even more awesome. Congratulations. Very well done. You inspire the rest of us.