Day 3189-90 —Sub 24 at the Shippey 100! — with pictures from the RACE

 

I wasn't sure what pace I would be able to maintain during the race as the previous finisher had completed it in over 29 hours. My plan was to run the first lap and adjust my goals accordingly. However, as I talked to Martin during the first lap, I confirmed my goal was between 26-28 hours, while still holding onto the possibility of finishing in under 24 hours. I calculated that I needed to run the first loop in around 4 hours to give myself a cushion for the later laps.

The course was extremely hilly, with many sections of steep inclines and declines. There were only a few switchbacks throughout the race. The first leg of the race was 5.25 miles and had its share of elevation, but it became one of my favorite legs as it had wider trails that were easier to navigate.

 

The First Lap 

Everything leading up to the race had gone better than expected. On race morning, I was well-rested and felt healthy. Although it was a little chilly when we started, I felt that my clothing choice was optimal. My hair froze during the first lap, but I hardly noticed as I was focused on completing the first 20-mile loop. The course was arranged in 5 legs, and runners were required to run counterclockwise and return to one of two aid stations every leg. The first two legs covered roughly 10 miles, and the last three legs made up the second half of the race. At first, I thought the many aid station possibilities might be unnecessary, but as I completed the first lap and the steep elevations began to take a toll on me, I found it harder to keep track of how far I had run. I am not used to climbing sudden 40% inclines, but I am not complaining, this is what I signed up to do.  

Distance: 20 miles 

Lap Time: 3:58:37

Average Pace: 11:56

Time of Day: 9:58 a.m. 

Place: 3

The Second Lap 

I mistakenly thought I was in first place because I had not seen anyone on the course in a long time and thought I had caught up with everyone who was ahead of me. However, I did not see Chris and Tim take an early lead, as they were easily pacing 2 minutes faster on average than I did on the first lap.

Because I thought I was in the lead, I kept thinking about how much I needed to slow down and that I was probably pushing too hard on the course. Regardless, I was elated that I made it through the first loop under 4 hours and still had a chance to achieve my goal of finishing in under 24 hours. As I was finishing the 100K runners were starting, so I was motivated to get a little ahead of them to be able to pace myself through the single-track sections. I talked to one of the 100K runners for a while about pets, and he told me about his dogs who he loved a lot.

Distance: 40 miles 

Lap Time: 4:20:28

Total Time: 8:19:05

Average Pace: 13:01

Time of Day: 2:19 p.m. 

Place: 3

The Third Lap 

I saw Tim running in the opposite direction on one of the legs, so I knew he was ahead of me. I asked my dad what he knew, and he said two guys were pacing around 10-minute miles for the first two loops. While I knew that the first guy, Chris, was far ahead of me, I couldn't remember seeing him. However, I repeatedly saw and spoke to Tim throughout the race. I am sure I did see Chris but didn't recognize him because I had never met him, so I probably just kept thinking he was a runner doing the 100K.

While I was a little disappointed that I wasn't in first place, it was great not to have the pressure of feeling like I was pacing too fast and needed to slow down. I felt good, so I kept running the trail, only slowing down when I needed to navigate a hill or for other reasons. I didn't think about my pace at all, I just had my watch set on navigation and tried to maximize each section to the best of my ability with my full focus. It takes a lot of focus to navigate the trail without falling while making sure to maintain an optimal pace to avoid exhaustion. Therefore, distance on a trail seems relative. You lose track of distance as you know it because the amount of thinking you must do on a trail is much more intense compared to pavement.

 

Distance: 60 miles 

Lap Time: 4:46

Total Time: 13:05:57

Average Pace: 14:18

Time of Day: 7:05 p.m. 

Place: 3

The Fourth lap 

My pregnant wife and daughter had come up to see me and brought me potato soup. It was amazing to drink that warm soup and see them. It was not an easy trip to make it there with our three-year-old, but it made such a huge difference to how I felt going back out on the trail after seeing them. My dad had been at every aid station since noon and was helping me move much quicker through the aid stations.

When I finished lap four, I saw Tim sitting down. He was eating real food and was clearly hungry. Part of me wanted to sit with him for a minute before going back out and maybe even start the next leg with him, but all I could think about was that I needed to move on. Every time I was at an aid station, I felt such an urgency to BE RUNNING. The time you spend at the aid station doing things is usually more harmful than helpful overall, in my experience. If you really need to do something because you need to rest, do so, but unless I feel like I really want to quit or I really need to use the bathroom or change something I am wearing, I try to fly through the aid station. I want to grab food and eat on the trail. I knew I was still on pace to finish under 24 hours. I finally broke my caffeine fast and had some cold brew and was on my way.

Distance: 80 miles 

Lap Time: 5:03

Total Time: 18:08

Average Pace: 15:09

Time of Day: 12:08 a.m. 

Place: 2

The Last Lap

My brother had come out to pace me, which has always been something I have asked him to do. It just worked out this weekend for him to come up, and he paced me through some of the legs. I think he ended up doing at least four legs with me, if not five. He ran two or three legs on the fourth lap and two legs on the last lap with me.

Because of the frequent aid stations, it made it easier for him to do a leg and then take a break between them. It was probably the best blend of motivation because I could focus on my own thing when I was doing it on my own while knowing he would be able to pace with me again soon. He was just constantly encouraging, which is exactly what I needed. I didn’t want to let any doubt or negativity in when I was out there. So, I started yelling at the trail, the rocks, and the sudden inclines, getting more and more angry at this stupid trail that thought it could prevent me from getting under 24 hours. I would stumble forward and catch myself and laugh at the trail's attempt to take me down! Not today, trail!

Ben did the last leg with me, which I barely remember now, but it was not easy, and it felt like it was so much longer than it was. I would feel like I had gone for at least a mile, only to discover I had only gone .2 miles. I would just laugh and think, "How is that possible?"

I knew it was going to be close, but I was still a little ahead of schedule.

 

Total Distance: 100+ miles 

Lap Time: 5:44

Total Time: 23:52:49

Average Pace: 17:12

Time of Day: 5:52 a.m. 

Place: 2

It makes such a huge difference seeing friendly faces throughout the day. My brother had his whole family with him at first, so his wife and kids were there too. Brad, who has been a family friend forever, also came out, so it was way more people than I have ever had supporting me during a race. My dad was there almost the whole time and was there when I finished and recorded me finishing, which has only rarely happened. I could not have done this well without everyone's support. Richard, who I had run the Shawnee Hill with, was there, and even though he had just done a 100-mile race two weeks ago, he still managed to finish this race under the cut-off time. I was watching him all day yesterday on the tracking site, and I was amazed by his determination to finish. He was out there until after 3 p.m. You would think the course would get easier in the day, but the problem with the sunshine was that it made all the ice that was frozen into mud. So, the course was so much faster when it was dark on certain legs, so that is such a huge effort. 

It is just crazy how up until now only one person had really finished and this time there was a total of 12 100-mile finishers with only 7 people who did not finish. Also, I never imaged someone would run this in around 21 hours, but Chris, the winner, finished in 20:39 minutes, so a big gap between my finish time! So, I cannot say I was ever trying to chase him during the race. However, I will certainly take second place. Second place is the highest I have ever placed in a 100-mile race, so for me, this was better than I could have possibly hoped for. Thank you all for making this happen. Also, the race directors who did an amazing job marking the course and organizing every aspect of the race! Also, the crew who would come up to me and get what I needed immediately! And Karolina who was doing the medical study and supported me during the race and was there the entire time! I know I smelled bad and looked frightening, so thank you all for not saying anything about it!

Now, I need to go run.