Day 4,126—So many deer! And Reflections on the Badger 100 Part III—

 

         I felt like I was moving fast, but I was barely getting under a 10-minute mile, running while wishing I had gone to bed earlier. I went over to the cemetery and got chiggers in my socks, my hair, and on my shorts. I was wondering why they had stopped mowing the grass around the tracks. I saw several deer, and then a group of turkeys ran across the lawn, so I took a picture. When I was going back, I saw more deer by the tracks, and then across Watson, there were more! I don’t think it was the same ones, so that is over a dozen! I wanted to work on my video of the race more, but I have been so tired and busy processing everything new in my new job.

Reflections on the Badger Part III: Running to Dot’s and finishing 50 miles at a 10:12 pace!

It was a little confusing to find the path to Dot’s initially, but I remembered how we drove there yesterday, and eventually, I saw the right path and was heading in that direction. I started passing people going the other direction when I was close to a mile away from Dot’s Tavern. I think PJ might have been in the lead of the runners whom I had talked to. It was good seeing everyone again. I felt like I was going a lot slower than they were, but I kept checking my watch and reassuring myself that this pace was exactly where I wanted to be. I was about to hit 35.x miles once I got to Dot’s, and it was only 5 and a half hours into the race, which would roughly put my close to a 9:30 on average pace. To get under 20 hours, I just needed to sub 12-minute miles overall, which might not sound that bad, but when you add in time to go to the bathroom, change clothes, and eat, it becomes a lot closer to under 11-minute miles, so starting faster could potentially make the second half easier.

         I know the wisdom is to start slower, which I agree is good advice, and the race where I got my best time, I did that, but it is a lot harder mentally to go against what your body naturally wants to do. When you start out, it is easier to go faster, so why not take advantage? It is always hard to run fast for the second 50 miles, and it was going to get hot soon, so I wanted to get as many invigorating miles in as I could. I knew I had slowed down some and taken the time to change clothes, but I was trying to be smart.

         When I made it to the tavern I walked over to the aid station and filled up my hydration. They handed me a coaster, and I gave them a look that spelled confusion. “I am good. I don’t need a coaster.”

         The guy offered to put it in my vest for me and said he was giving it to me to prove I had gone to Dot's. “There are no timing mats out here.”

         I shoved the coaster in my vest pocket next to my phone and commented that it was getting hot. The guy suggested I go downstairs at Dots, but I didn’t even consider taking more unnecessary steps at this point in the race!

         On my way out, I ran into Nicholas and Travis. They were so close to Dot’s that I was barely pacing ahead of them. My journey back to Bellville didn’t take nearly as long as it did the first time. I didn’t stay there long, but went to give someone my coasters that had fallen apart in my pocket! I was so annoyed! Bits of the coaster were all over my phone. The guy I offered it to said, No, thanks. I thought at least they might check some box, but when they didn't, I threw it away. I had no issue with Dot’s or the assignment. I have done similar things in other races. It seems having to use a hole punch on your bib is a normal way to handle it.

         I was only 35 miles in, but I had experienced the whole course at this point. There would be no more directional things to have to remember. I thought about the bracelet that he gave us, “What Would a Train Do?” And I thought it was kind of mean, but I changed my mind once it got dark. It was incredibly useful advice.

         Now, I was passing people who were still running to Dot’s for the first time, and I was calculating in my head what lap they were on. When I was on mile 42, they were on mile 23. I kept looking for Heath, who had met me the first night. He said that he was planning to pace it to almost 36 hours, which is what he did last year. When I got to him, he was about 20 miles behind me, so he was about hitting that pace, which worried me if this was his first half.

         The aid station before the road detour was at mile 43, and I was so happy to make it there. I was getting closer to 50, and I could tell I would at the very least make it under 9 hours, which would mean I would have over an hour of banked time to make it under 20 hours! I walked the hills and looked at the beautiful farmland, but it was getting hot.

         Not too long later, Nicholas caught up to me. He showed me he had made a video on his phone, edited it, and posted it to Instagram, all while we were running! I can barely edit any video in a noisy room. I was impressed he was getting some content made while we were running. Then a butterfly flew by, and he started chasing it with his camera. He got some good footage of it and immediately showed it to me.

         We ran a little longer together, but then he was off to the races, and I was running by myself. I was going to make it to the Monticello aid station soon, and I was planning on taking a minute to make sure I cooled down. When I got there, the aid stations offered me an ice bandana. I told him I didn’t have my own, and they said I could have the one they gave me! They also put ice down my vest. It was probably only in the 80s, but I was overheating.

         I left again, not wanting to give up my first half lead, and I couldn’t wait to see the time I would make it to half, which ended up being 8 hours and 35 minutes, which might seem fast, but I remembered that the course was 101 miles, so I waited to see where I would be at 50.5 half miles. Either way, I was only going to need to average under a 13-minute mile to finish at 20 miles! I also started to cool down, so I decided I would let myself walk if necessary because the sun was getting to the hottest it had been all day, and I was not about to drive myself into dehydration, so the only other way besides drinking water to stay hydrated was to stay cool.

Tomorrow Part IV: But will they have Vegan Burgers?