Hennepin100
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| sisters |
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| pacers |
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| packet pick up |
Bad news: I got about two hours. This time I was actually shocked. I was pretty chill going to bed. I feel like I set myself up for success. Sadly, my brain had other plans. Ah well, I guess it is something I can count on in the future.
In the morning, I caught the bus from the finish line at 5am. It was an hour drive to the start. The buses were delightfully warm on the cold morning. I tried to catch some sleep on that school bus but rest was all I got. We arrived at the start line about 40 minutes before the start. I am more of a roll in five minutes before the start kind of runner; so I was not sure what to do with myself with all that time. I ended up using the port-o-potties, making conversation with other runners, holding some coffee to warm up and taking off my layers. Here’s a good one: At the last minute, I was taking off my layers when I went to put something in my skirt pocket. That’s when I discovered I had put on my run skirt INSIDEOUT!!!! Yep! 90 seconds to the start and I ran behind a car (not a parking lot just a random car at the startline), dropped my skirt to my ankles and proceeded to fix it. (Insert forehead slap here) I sincerely hope I made some people laugh because it was just that ridiculous. I got my bib pinned back on and extra layers into my drop bag just in time to join the masses running by to start.
The first bit of the course was snaking our way through the park towards the river crossing. I remember the runners were quiet so we could hear all the feet pounding and our clothes swooshing. We ran through a tunnel and it opened us up to beautiful morning sunlight. We crossed The Rock River along a pedestrian bridge in golden light with views of white pelicans on the water. It was picturesque. Then we made the final turn on to our canal path that would take us about 30 miles south. The masses were spread out a bit more as runners found their own groove. It was about this time that I noticed I was running alongside the same young lady. I started up a conversation with her and I mentioned I needed to slow down a little bit. She asked me what pace I was going for and I told her 12 to 12:30 to begin with and she said me too and so we ended up spending about 16 miles together. I love this about trail running. During Ultras you find yourself spending miles with people. We chatted about everything. Small world she's actually from Fairplay, Colorado. We kept forgetting each other's names but remembered where we were from; so, we decided that we had Trail names like we were hiking the ADK trail. I called her Fairplay and she called me Westy. At about mile 18 or so I told her sadly I needed to break up the band because we were hovering right at 12 minute miles and I knew I needed to slow down because I had a long way to go. It was fun while it lasted.
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| Tunnel Fun |
Nothing much happened until aide station 6. I was boiling hot and using the cooling buff that I had stashed in my drop bag at AS4. At this aide station (mile 27.3) I needed to refill my reservoir with water and my baggie of Tailwind. I also rewet my buff and cooling arm sleeves. I headed out of the aide station with a homemade chocolate chip cookie. I got about a tenth of a mile out when I realized I didn’t know where my cooling buff was and I remembered putting it down on the table. Well it was waaaay too hot to go without it so I turned around and headed back. “You’re going to the wrong way!” Laughing I said yes and told them I forgot my blue buff…only to realize it was around my neck the entire time!! (insert forehead slap here) Arrrrg, so I turned around again. Grabbed another cookie and headed out…again.
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| 50k PR celebration shot! |
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| sisters |
The trail headed east along the Hennepin Canal in the sun. At this point I was fine just plugging along listening to music. 100 miles is a long way so it’s good to be able to just zone out for a while. I zipped through the next aide station with my crew. As I was leaving Aide Station 8 at mile 38.7, I noticed that a man was power walking at the same pace as my jog. (something you should know about me and that maybe I should work on improving…my walk is slow. I meander, I lollygag, I am a member of the sloth walking club. I will get there when I get there.) I was so impressed with his walk pace that I told him! We laughed a bit and he pressed on for a moment. Then he dropped back and said something like, I like your vibe. Mind if I join you? Well of course I said please do. Like I said before one of the best parts of ultra running is the people you meet. Butch, a retired officer from the twin cities area and I ended up staying together through the next ten miles or so! We chatted and we cheered on other runners. It was a good time!
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| The REAL turn around! |
Aide station 10 at mile 47.5, I had a big transition. First, it was 6:18pm and we were heading into the night. I changed into a dry sports bra and shirt, applied antichaffe for the millionth time, opted not to pick up my poles yet as I was feeling super strong still and picked up my first pacer, Lisa! Lisa and I were running the last bit of the out-and-back together. I was so so so excited to have my first run buddy. Lisa told me all about what they did all morning (easy start to the day but then got bored so they ended up going to a honest-to-goodness biker bar…where they had fun but felt completely out of place). So funny! After about a mile and a half we reached signs saying, “50 mile turn around.” We thought that it was weird it only said 50 mile but there was no one further along the very dark trail. So we turned around….still saying that was weird. Mid chit chat about two tenths of a mile back down the trail Lisa suddenly yelled, NO! We were supposed to hit an aide station before heading back, which I immediately remembered. So we turned around again. We passed the 50 mile signs and eventually saw some returning runners and then hit the aide station. We zipped past to the actual turn around where we took a picture to commemorate the true turn. The picture was a bit wonky-donkey but I thought it was funny so we didn’t retake it. Back at the aide station I had mashed potatoes and soup.
I think it’s funny that for my last 100 I told my crew that I never want sweets after about mile 30. Then all I wanted was gummy candies the entire event! Well this time I told my crew, here are all my staples, here is all the candy I bought because of last time but who knows what will really happen. Well THIS TIME I very very quickly was turned off by anything sweet and even my Honey Stinger chews which was unheard of- they are always a staple go to for me. Well the rest of the race I ate real food at the aide stations and drank Tailwind from mile 65 and on!
At aide station 12, mile 54ish, Kirsten jumped in to pace for just a little 5k. We also did our first foot care (yuck!) and added layers. It is very helpful to have a person who is ok with lancing and taping blisters. So gross and not at all pleasant but helpful in the long run. While Kirsten was lancing, the rest of the crew was working on me like a race car pit crew following the aide station crew to-do list that I made the week before the race. One person checked the tightness & battery life of my garmin (we plugged it in to a small mofi and strapped it to the back of my pack as I was hoping to record the full 100 miles this time) while another was handing me a long sleeve shirt while the third swapped out my reservoir for a full one. It was impressive. Off we went into the night. One fun thing I did was have each person tell me their perspective of their biker bar experience. They all told the same story but with a different view and different details. It was a fun social experiment.
Sarah jumped in at mile 57. We ran along while Sarah shared stories from her life in San Diego. Five miles later we had a quick aide station stop at mile 62. Back on the trail I learned all about Sarah’s musical called #Life! The Musical. Amazing entertainment. Beyond pacer technology problems, the miles moved along with out any major problems. We moved at the pace my legs wanted to go and enjoyed our time together. I don't think people understand how much I appreciate pacers. The trail with a buddy is 10,000 times more enjoyable than alone.
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| Erin & Erica |
We approached the mile 69 Aide Station- what a party! It is next to a bridge and they had music going and the disco ball was lit up on the bridge. It was about 12:40AM and it was time for poles as I could tell my legs were struggling. We headed out across the bridge. Kirsten was helping Erin with something as we walked across so I decided to dance a little in the disco light. As we headed out into the night, I learned that I was now an hour behind my goal time. This was tough. I can get super dark about pace. Unlike the Yeti100, this time I was nowhere near the official cutoff but in my head I was blowing it. I got super negative and frustrated. I am happy to report that my darkness lasted a much shorter amount of time than last. I eventually asked Erin to have us play a pacing game with 30 seconds of running and 30 seconds of walking. I was deep in the pain cave at this point. Every part of my legs hurt, especially the speed transitions. Erin eventually changed the timing to more walking and longer running. I also needed a pre-get ready countdown so I could start getting my legs into the push off feeling before actually running. This took so much effort. Erin was with me for almost 20 miles. We heard coyotes, played the awful game of paces, ate more mashed potatoes at aide stations, bushwhacked around a little flooded underpass which was seriously amusing. I even dropped a few F bombs into the dark and thought I had pooped my pants (thankfully I had not). It got cold. Erin was a trouper helping me through the literal darkest and coldest miles of the race.
By the time we got to mile 88, I was a hot mess. There was a real bathroom that I desperately needed (my stomach had been pissed for a very long time at this point). Fun fact: this aide station crew had lights in the bathrooms and wipes!!!! Ahhhhmazing. We also needed to do foot care because it felt like I was walking on glass and change shirts one last time. I also took a salt tab, a tums and some tylenol…apparently too quickly because I got so very nauseous. It took a full 22 minutes to get all that done but thinking about it there is literally no way I could have done all that faster.
Kirsten and I headed out for the last 12 miles sometime around 7am, the 24 hour mark. It took me a bit to shake out the stop from my legs but we got moving. Again, like last time, it took so much effort and all we were doing were 19:30 minute miles! It is truly astounding the amount of effort it took to go that slow! We walked (in my head I was running) and talked and listened to music. The sun came back out and I started to broil. It was so so hot. Lisa and Sarah surprised me at aide station 20, mile 95. They had gone back to the VRBO after their pacer miles for some sleep and I did not expect to see them until the finish. Kirsten let me use her cooling buff as I was just melting. My body had lost the ability to control temperature. I was baking. It felt like I was under a magnifying glass with the sun just sucking me of my will to live. The cooling buff was so helpful. Kirsten carried a gallon zip lock for the last five miles with ice in it so she could rewet the buff over and over. The last 5 miles were a death march. I was so exhausted and just ready to be done. Kirsten was able to stay positive. I needed her so much. At one point she was telling me a story and I must have fallen off pace a bit because the next thing I knew she was pointing to the ground next to her and telling me to keep up. Well, I had fallen asleep…while walking. It was just for a moment but damn, that was a first!
Summary & Reflection: I set a new 50k PR!!!! (So excited for a sub-7!) Next 50k was a bit slower, as planned, but totally solid. Wheels came off the last 50k. But…. I thought a lot about the balance between having fun and being hyper focused on goals. I opted for less stress with my pacers. Would I have loved to maintain my pace through the last 30 miles? Of course but 🤷🏼♀️ I’ll take it.
For next time:
- Be careful not to miss anything down below when applying antichaffe. OUCH!
- I heard that diaper cream might be more effective at these distances rather than basic Vaseline. Maybe test that out?
- Make sure all pacers have a pacing device and has practiced with it prior to race day.
- If I am going for specific paces during segments before I am allowed pacers, I need to have them written on my arm or written down somewhere so I can reference them while out on course.
- Allow for more time in aide stations realistically maybe 5 min average
- Expect two 10-20 minute stops for foot care- they ALWAYS take a long time.
- Make sure you get at least one picture running with each pacer! Fun idea- a picture at the start of their miles together and one at the end.
- I learned that when I start to struggle I do well with upbeat music I know (show tunes, Disney, 80s/90s workout music) and I do best with very tough motivation. “Yes, you are in all kinds of pain but suck it up and let's go.”
- Research levothyroxine and temperature regulation. I did not take it the second morning. Could that have helped my temperature regulation?
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