Day 4,211—Almost November and Part IV of the OT 100!—

 

       I keep forgetting that it is Halloween tomorrow and my daughter will be on fall break, for which she is disappointed because she loves school. I woke up when I usually leave to go running. I am not sure why I didn’t get up on time, but I made short work of getting ready and was outside soon. I honestly felt fine, not fully recovered fine, but better than I often do during a heavy week of training.

Part IV of the OT: 7 miles until my headlamp

        I kept looking down and checking my shoes, but so far, the new tape and rope combination was holding them together. When I got to one of the many creek crossings, I powered through and tried not to look at my shoes until a while after. I made it to the 47-mile aid station roughly around 5:30, so 30 minutes before nightfall. I sat in a chair at the aid station, relieved as I told the workers there that my shoes were still working okay. Everyone was so helpful. I asked if someone might change the batteries in my headlamp, which I thought wouldn’t be that difficult, but it turned into a more difficult task than I thought, involving at least two volunteers. I explained how changing the batteries in that headlamp was one of the reasons that headlamp became my backup. My fingers just don’t work so well after running about 50 miles. I had fallen so many times at that point and mainly caught myself with my fingers. My fingers start to swell over time, and they become less cooperative than they were when I started.

        By the time I headed back out, at least 4 different runners who I had passed were now ahead of me. I started sweating and feeling overwhelmed all of a sudden. I wasn’t sure what was going on, but then I realized it was relief because I had my headlamp, and I was confident that I would be able to make it to my other pair of shoes. I tried to slow down enough to take a video and enjoy the moment. I still hadn’t listened to any music or used my phone for anything other than pictures and videos. I debated letting myself start listening to music at the next aid station. I paced the first 50 miles in under 12 hours somehow, but it was going to be very difficult to do another 50 miles in the dark at that pace to sub 24 hours. Right at 6 p.m., it started getting dark rapidly, and 15 minutes later, it was pitch black, and it started to rain.