Allison Woods Halloween Hobble 100

All geared up.  In the kitchen before we left

Preface

After dropping from the VM 150 at mile 67 in May, I asked my wife, Crystal,  if she would mind if I looked for a race in the area for the fall (we just moved to Charlotte, NC from MI).  When she gave the green light, I looked around on the inter webs for a race in the area.  I finally found one that was just over an hours drive from the house.  The Allison Woods Halloween Hobble (AWHH).  I was pretty hyped that it was so close.  This way, I could finish the race with my kids.

Since this was a Halloween themed event, costumes were encouraged.  In my pre-ultra days, I had run a 10k in a dress, wig, and the Miss America sash.  I wasn't about to run 100 miles in a dress or wig, so Crystal suggested a bikini top.  (She wanted me to wear the bottoms over my shorts, but I vetoed that idea.

Prelude

As we pulled into the race, I got super hyped.  There were not more than 18 cars.  This looked like a super low key event!  I was totally excited.
And Jon Savage was going to be here!  I admit to being a slight fan boy when it comes to Mr. Savage.

A Bit About the Race

The AWHH was run on a 4 mile loop.  It had a 6, 12, and 24 hour option in addition to the 100 mile.  I wasn't sure how I felt about 25 loops (I'm still not sure how I feel about it).  I had finished a couple 100 milers that consisted of 6 loops, and one that was 5 loops.
The main aid station was at the start/finish.  There was a small aid station about 2.75 miles on the loop.  They had water, some fruit, and the occasional Cliff bar.

I consider the trail to meet the barest requirements to be classified as a trail.  Not that that's a bad thing by any means.  I'm not terribly fond of single track, or technical trails.  This was neither of those.  The trail was ~10 ft wide.  There were a few rocky parts, and a few roots.  But the roots were well marked with orange blaze.  There were a couple of sandy stretches.  Not long, but enough to get into your shoes.

Drew's (the RD) description on Ultra Signup stated a bit over 300 ft of elevation gain per loop, for a total of over 9000 feet for the 100 mile.  My gps had a total elevation gain of 9209 feet, which was 368.36 feet per loop.

But the trail was perfect in my opinion.

You go into the woods for maybe .5 miles, then come out onto the 'fairway' for about .5 - .75 miles.  This was the worst part.  

The grass was so thick that it felt like running on a very deep shag carpet.  It really started to get to me after awhile.

After that, you go back into the woods for ~.5 miles, then come back out onto the fairway (but the grass wasn't thick on this side of it).  You run about .2 miles, go back into the woods, and finish the loop in the woods.
Here's a link from the actual race results that show the true loop splits.  Just click on my name.

Here's the Strava:

Strava only counts moving time (I know.  It's dumb.) So the overall time is incorrect, as are some of the mile splits.

First 2 Loops

I started the race with a woman running the 6 hour (Debbie?), a guy running the 24 hour (I named him Orange Shorts), and another gentleman running the 100M (Joel).

I'm pretty sure that Orange Shorts and Debbie(?) separated from Joel and I after the first loop.

Joel and I started chatting during loop two.  He was no stranger to the 100 mile distance, and it was an unspoken agreement that he and I would stick together until we didn't anymore.  

Very important that one run their own race, and not get caught up going too fast or too slow to accommodate someone else.

As we approached the start/finish after loop 2, I told Joel that I needed to address an issue with my left foot, and that I'd catch up with him sooner or later.

The sand had started to act like fine grit sandpaper in my left sock.  I asked the volunteers for some baby wipes, and set to the task of cleaning my foot.  

Since my right foot was fine, I only took care of the left one.  I grabbed a clean pair of socks from my race tub, cleaned my foot, applied some silicone lubricant, put the fresh sock on, retied my shoe, and I was on my way.

Miles 20 - 52

Joel had parked his car where the trail came out onto the fairway the second time (1.5 miles onto the loop).  I caught up with him there.

The next 30 miles we walked.  A lot.  I would say we walked 28 of those 32 miles.  No leisurely stroll, mind you.  We were still averaging ~15 min/mile.  We just walked a lot.

At some point, Joel's wife and two of his daughters showed up, so he (we) stopped to chat with them.  Joel changed his shoes at that point.

Joel stopped to change his shoes again at some point in the 40s (I think) because his foot was bothering him.  We got about 50 feet from his car when he realized that he had brought the wrong pair from home.  These were too small.  I made him go back to the car and change into the original pair that he was wearing.  

Wearing shoes that are too small is never a good idea.

At mile 52, we stopped again.  It was 9:58pm.  Joel had determined that it wasn't the shoes that were the issue, but his foot.  He feared he'd have to have an x-ray.  I remember saying, "I'm definitely not a doctor.  I'm just a dude whose run a lot of miles and had a lot of injuries.  Is it a sharp, stabbing pain?"  When he replied in the negative, I told him, "It's probably just a tendon issue then."

But his race was done.

I called Crystal and told her where I was at in the race, that Joel was done, but that I felt pretty good.  That was the last time that I felt pretty good.

On the display that the race timing company had setup just after one crossed the mat at the start/finish, I saw that Liz Bauer was here too.
Jon Savage and Liz Bauer?  Holy crap!  I've never been around such fame!

Math (Miles 52 - 100)

Of course math.  Joel and I had done it a bunch when we still had the ability to do so.  We had determined that even if we continued to walk at the pace we were maintaining, we would finish in the 27 hour mark.  

The thing is that time spent at aid stations is also factored into the overall pace.  We had spent some considerable time at the start/finish on an occasion or two, and some considerable time at his car on an occasion or two.

When I left on my 14th loop, I was trying to do the math in my head.  But my mind had already passed the point where that was possible.  30 hours - whatever time it was.  That was to get to the hours and minutes that I had left.  Convert that into minutes.  Divide that by the miles that I had left would give me the slowest I could go, in minutes/mile, to finish by the 30 hour cutoff.

I remember pulling into the start/finish at some point when it was dark and asking some what fervently for a calculator (might have been after mile 68, loop 17).  Drew (RD) came up and said, "What do you need?"  I had managed to determine how many minutes I had left until the cutoff, and told him to divide that number by however many miles I had left.  I think the number he gave me was 18.x.  I said thanks, topped off my water, then headed out onto the next loop.

As I was leaving, he asked me what the number that I gave him was.  I told him that it was the number of minutes I had left.  He asked me if I was doing the 24 hour.  I said, "No.  That's the number of minutes left until the 30 hour cutoff."

I just hustled the best I could.  I would power up the uphills, run the downhills until that momentum stopped, then power on until the next downhill.

Looking back at the Strava, it's easy to see the toll that the night took on me.  It sure felt like I was moving quicker than that.

The next thing that I remember clearly is pulling into the start/finish again and asking for a calculator.  This was when I had 5 loops (20 miles) left.  I told the young lady that obliged my request to divide 440 (number of minutes left until the cutoff) by 20.  I then immediately said, "Never mind.  It's 22."  This made me feel quite a bit better.  I knew that if I just kept on keeping on as I would, I would be fine.

The sun rose on loop 5.  That's always the best feeling/site in a 100 miler.

I texted Crystal after that loop with the message "4 loops.  A bit over 5 hours".  The plan was for me to call her when I had 2 loops left, so that she would have time to get the kids ready, and drive out to the finish.

I called her at 10:19, told her I had 2 - 2.5 hours left.  I wouldn't be able to take my phone with me since it was raining, but told her where to park so that I could just holler when I came out of the woods on the last loop.

Thank God.  The last loop.  Of course, it started raining in earnest on this loop.  It doesn't rain all summer in NC, and now it's pouring.

I came out of the woods and saw Crystal at the back of her car (she was changing the baby's diaper).  I yelled,

"SINIARSKIS!  ASSEMBLE!"

Our two oldest came running over, and Crystal came over holding Imogen (our youngest).  I grabbed Imogen, and ran to the finish.  Drew's dad managed to snap a couple photos of us.

Postlude

Yeah, I'm not sure how I feel about 25 loops.  I am sure that I love this event.  Drew is awesome.  The volunteers were awesome.  The low key feel of it was awesome.  

I told Drew that I would be back next year to volunteer.  

And I most certainly will.

Lessons Learned

I learned three things from this event.

1. Don't do a lot of walking too soon.  You may find yourself pressed for time when you're not able to make it up
2. Do some terrain specific training.  I hadn't run on a trail in exactly one year, when I finished IT in 2018.  Thank God that this trail was so forgiving.  My body hasn't felt this beat up in many years, and I have to believe that's because I've been running on roads for a year.
3. I feel that I'm finally really in-tune with my body. 
   When liquid was sloshing in my stomach, I ate something salty and switched to a drink with electrolytes.
   When I was still thirsty after drinking, I abstained from the salt and switched to drinking water.
4. Never match wits with a Sicilian when death is on the line. (inside joke for those that get it)

 Training

I also haven't taken more than one week off of running in well over a year.  Since I started training for IT 2018 in July of that year.

When making my Google sheet to track my training for AWHH, I had erred.  I cut myself short by four weeks of my usual 15 week training regime.

Because I never really fell out of shape over the past year, I figured I was ok.

This was my first time running in anything other than a MI summer.  Summer down here in Charlotte, NC is hot.  Real hot.

And humid.

Super, ultra, mega, unforgivingly humid.

I decided that this training was going to be an exercise in finding out how little I could do and still finish.  I'm comfortable with the results.  Link to the full sheet here

I missed one whole week due to an achilles tendon issue.  My longest run was 27.1 miles.  I didn't really taper at all, just took the week leading up to the race completely off.

But I felt so terrific after that last run.  I wasn't worn out from the training.  It was great.
I might just try this again in the future.

No pacer, no problem: Indiana Trail 100, 2018

Preface

IT100 has always been special for me.  It was my first 100M attempt and finish in 2013.  I had DNF there in 2015, and paced 2016 and 2017.  When the opportunity to run it this year fell into my lap, it wasn't even a decision to run it or not.  I decided to run it without crew or pacer this year.  Crew is simply not necessary at this race; the volunteers are the best, and there were four Aid Stations (AS) on the course.  Counting the main AS at the Start/Finish, that's five per loop.

Deciding to run without a pacer wasn't that difficult either.  Not that I'm some super experienced 100M runner, but I do have a handful of finishes, and a few DNFs.  I figured that this was the race to do it at due to the number of AS.

As always, notes on my training and lessons learned can be found at the end of this report.

A Bit About the Race

From 2013 - 2016, the race was 6 loops of 16 2/3 miles per loop.  Last year the course was changed to a 20 mile loop, and 50M and 100km distances were added.  In its current iteration, the course offers approximately 8,340 feet of gain for the 100 miles.  There are AS at miles 3, 7.5, 12.1, and 17.5 on the course.

It's mostly rolling hills, with a few larger climbs.  This year the race was moved from April to October, so I can now say that I ran the first IT ever, and the first one in October.

Prerace

I rode down to Indiana from my home state of MI on Friday with my ever present running partner, Kurt.  Kurt would be volunteering at the 3 mile AS, named South Park, the entirety of the race.  He would be the AS captain Saturday night until the AS closed Sunday morning.

We arrived at Chain O' Lakes State Park at 3:45 pm.  I got registered, got my picture taken, and said hello to the Race Director (RD) Mike Pfefferkorn.  We've known Mike since the inaugural race in 2013.  Since then, I've seen him at a couple of races outside of IT as well.

Kurt and I then went to check into our cabin, located in the park.  At 41, I feel that I've earned a bed before a race (as opposed to sleeping on the ground, camping style).

Also staying in our cabing was the timer for the event, Mike Melton.  He does the timing for events like Across the Years and the Big Dog Backyard Ultra.  Anyone that's been on the Ultra List has at least heard that name before.  I was pretty excited to meet Mike, who was a minor celebrity to me.   

We attended the pre-race, RD announcements more for something to do than anything else.  I had run this race when the course was underwater, and when the course was covered with shoe-sucking mud.  I knew what to expect.  The forecast for Saturday was sunny, a high in the 50s (F), and a low in the 30s.  Most importantly, no rain was forecast.

It did rain Friday evening, but not hard.

Go Time - Loop 1

The 50M started at 5:55am, and the 100k and 100M runners started at 6.  Kurt and I got to the main tent around 5am, and I sat in there to keep warm until the start.  I was wearing my trusty Altra Lone Peaks, tights, shorts,  short sleeved and long sleeved tech shirts, and my rain coat.  I also had on a bandana, which I always wear, a Buff, and my running hat.  The hat was there because I have to have it when wearing a head lamp.  I hate the way a head lamp feels on my head, and the hat mitigates that.  I had meant to bring a watch so I would know the time, but I had forgotten it at home.  I had one hand-held bottle.

When the announcement was made that the 50M would be starting, I headed out to the start corral.

After the 50M had left, I chose a spot in the middle of the remaining runners.  I had been used to the first couple of miles being single track, and didn't want to be at the end of the congo line that always results because of that.  Apparently I had forgotten that there really isn't much single track on the course, maybe 3-5 miles per loop, and that was not in the first five.  I was able to run along with everyone on the broad trail.

We came to a short, somewhat steep hill that was very slick with mud.  Halfway up, I slipped and went down to a knee.  It took a couple of tries to get back up because it was so slippery.

I cruised along solo until after the sun rose, at which time I came upon three runners running together.  The two guys were going for their first 100, and the woman was going for her second.  As is the case with most first time 100M runners I've talked to, the guys were shooting for a sub 24 hour finish.  I knew that running my own race was vital, due to a DNF at Yankee Springs quad marathon in 2016.  I realized that the pace at which I was running this loop was too fast for my goal.  But I felt good, so I ran with them.  I also knew that I would pay for that pace Saturday night.

I told them as we were nearing the end of this loop that we were right on pace for their goal, and that if they were going to continue to strive to that end, they would have to leave me sooner rather than later.

We finished that loop in ~4:05.

Loop 2

I had learned from my success at Hennepin last year that getting in and out of the AS as quickly as possible was key.  There would be 23 AS available during the race.  If one spent only five minutes at each one, that was nearly two hours of extra time.  

So I ducked into the AS, dropped my coat off, and went back out on the course, while the other three that I had been running with did not.

The pace of the first loop was already taking its toll.  Well, that and the fact that only 5.2% of my training was done on the trail.  My quads were pretty tight from the downhills.  Other than that, I still felt great.

At some point on this loop, I ended up taking off my shirts and tucking them into the back waistband of my tights.  My rule of thumb is that if it's over 50 degrees, I run shirtless.  I had also put my hat and buff into one of my pockets.

I met back up with two of them about halfway through this loop.  One of the guys had decided to go for sub 24, while the other one had changed his goal to just finishing.  I had to use the porta-john quickly, and then waited for them before we continued on.

We finished this loop in ~5:07

Loop 3

My quads now felt like someone had filleted pieces out of them.  It wasn't agonizing, but it was extremely uncomfortable.  Another rule of thumb I have is that if it's uncomfortable to walk, and it's uncomfortable to run, then I might as well run.  I was still able to walk very quickly due to my training for Hennepin when I trained specifically for that.  I read a race report where a runner described it as a Jason Voorheis walk, and that's how I've thought of it ever since.

So we ran when we could through the first half of this loop.  At some point the other two pulled ahead for a couple of miles.  I later passed them with the Voorheis walk, and never saw them again.  I found out later that they had both dropped.

The sun set while I was out on this loop.  I have a wonderful hand held, rechargable flashlight that my wife bought me, so I busted that out.

I was having fun with the volunteers who kept saying, "Andrew, you still don't have a shirt on!"  To which I replied, "I'm not cold yet!"  One time, my addled brain came up with, "I'm not hot yet!"  and they said, "You're not hot yet?"  I laughingly said, "I'm not hot yet, or I'm not cold yet, or whatever."

At the end of this loop, I stopped at the main AS to grab my mp3 players and change into my Altra Olympus.  

I felt like a new man!

I finished it around 5:40

Loop 4

With my music playing, and the shoe change, I ran the majority of the first three miles of this loop to the first AS.  I stopped there and sat down to talk to Kurt, and just have some company for a few minutes.  I knew not to stay too long, so after a cup of soup, I was on my way.

The time had come for me to pay the price for that first loop.  I continued to pay the toll until the sun rose Sunday morning.

The only running that I did on this loop was in those first three miles.  I stopped and sat at the 7.5 and 17.5 AS to enjoy some company, a cup of coffee, and a cup of soup.  I did not stop at the 12.1 AS because it was too hot in that tent.  I didn't want to sit down in there, because I knew how difficult it would be to get up again.  The AS I stopped at were small affairs, and the tents only had three sides so I was able to get a little warm, but was still exposed to the air outside.

Not having a pacer at night kind of sucked.

There was a guy that I would pass while walking, who would then catch up and pass me while I was sitting there.

I had put my shirts on after I left Kurt's AS, but it was getting a bit chilly.  I was losing my fine motor skills.  For about 20 miles now, I had only been eating Cliff bars I grabbed from AS.  I would grab a couple and put them into my pockets.  With my hands being occupied with a bottle and a flashlight, I was having increasing difficulty digging one out and opening it.

Shortly after leaving the 12.1 AS, I noticed some grit in one my shoes.  It's imperative to take care of problems as soon as possible, and mitigate the consequences.  I knew I would have to take that shoe and sock off, clean my foot, and reapply the 2 Toms lubricant to that foot.  I was hoping to make it to the AS at 17.5.

I could not.  I found a very large log on the side of the trail, stopped, and took care of my foot.  I cleaned it off as best I could with my buff, turned my sock out and shook it, and reapplied the 2 Toms.

A runner with his pacer and the guy that I had been leap frogging passed me while I was doing that, and both inquired if I was ok.

That's the amazing thing about ultras: the people are so kind.  They sounded genuinely concerned for my well being.

I assured them that I was fine, just doing some necessary foot work, and they continued on.

It took me over 7 hours for this loop.  I don't have the exact loop splits.

One of the gentleman that shared a cabin with us was volunteering at the main AS when I pulled in after this loop.  I told him, "I really don't want to do another loop".  He suggested that I sit down and rest for a few minutes.  I told him, "If I sit down here, I might not get up again".  So I went back out for loop 5.

Loop 5

I had the sunrise to look forward to on this loop.  Because I only do one 100 per year, and I finished Hennepin 2017 in the dark, it had been over two years since I had experienced that.  However, I still had about 4-5 hours before that happened.

This loop started much the same as loop 4: I ran about 2/3 of the way to the 3 mile AS.  I had been using my flashlight for ~8 hours now, and it was totally messing with my depth perception.  I couldn't see small divots in the trail, which caused my foot to come down realy hard, which jarred my lower back.  I couldn't see small mounds in the trail, which caused me to kick them and stumble.

When I finally reached the 3 mile AS, I asked Kurt if he had a headlamp I could use.  Mine was almost out of batteries.  He fished one out of his running box for me.  Another gentleman gave me 3 spare batteries as well.

I told Kurt what I had been doing, spending 5 minutes at the two AS just for company.  He said, "You want me to pace you the rest of the way?"  I immediately replied, "No way.  Then I can't say that I did it by myself."
I remember once on this loop I pulled over to the side of the trail to pee.  I had my handheld tucked in my armpit and proceeded to relieve myself.  I must have fallen asleep for a few seconds, because I 'came to', noticing that I had been standing there, drooling on the ground.

I passed the guy I had been leap frogging on the way to the 7.5 AS, where we repeated what we had been doing.  I sat and enjoyed some coffee, soup, and company, he showed up, got some soup, and ate it while continuing on the loop.

I caught him again after a mile or two, but instead of passing him, I slowed down and struck up a conversation.  I suggested that we finish the race together, and he agreed.

I only know his name from the race results, but we talked about our careers (we're both in software development), our families (we both have three children, girl, boy, girl), and many other things.  This was his first 100M attempt, and would be his first finish.  I admired his grit and determination.

The longest stretch between AS is the 5.4 miles on the back of the loop.  In the dark, that was a long 5.4 miles.  The good thing is that, once you reach that AS at 17.5, you only have 2.7 miles to go until the end of the loop.

The sun rose in that stretch, and provided quite a lift to our spirits.

When we finally hit that last AS, the volunteers told us that they had some egg and cheese burritos.  After eating the same pb&j, turkey and cheese sandiches, and cheese quesadillas for over 90 miles, those burritos were so delicious.  We each enjoyed one, and then proceeded on to cover the last 2.7 miles to the finish.

Our quads were so beat up from the downhills at this point that every time we came to one, we cringed a bit.  The back eight miles of the course was the most hilly, so we did this more than a few times.

The end of the loop dumps you out on a road about .5 miles from the finish.  You run along the road, through a paking lot, up a hill, then down the hill to the finish.  We were super happy to see that road.  

When we reached the top of the hill, he said, "I'll let you go first."  I was confused until I realized he meant to the finish.  I just assumed we'd cross the mat together.  I told him, "This is way more of a big deal to you than it is to me, you go ahead."

I then watched him cross the mat before I hobbled/ran the hill to the finish.

I hugged one of the volunteers that's been volunteering since 2013, and Mike presented me with my buckle.

Kurt was right there, so we made our way to the main tent.  I sat down in a chair for a minute, he grabbed my tub of gear, and we went to his car.

Final time: 28:08.

Top is this years buckle.  Bottom is 2013's buckle

Postlude

Running 100 miles is never easy.  Having a pacer to keep you company, especially at night, can be very psychologically, but it's not necessary.  I'm glad I now know that I'm able to complete the distance without a pacer.  It's all about just doing what has to be done, and putting one foot in front of the other.

Lessons Learned

I suppose the biggest thing that I learned at this race is that I paid a far greater price for that first loop than I expected.  Run your own race.  As I mentioned, I already knew that, but this race defininitely reinforced it.
I learned that I din't necessarily need trail miles, in training, to finish a trail race.  But those trail miles sure would have been beneficial.
I learned that I'm very in tune with my body.  My urine was clear and colorless for the duration of the event, which means that I was staying very well hydrated.  My stomach never felt sloshy, which meant that I wasn't over-hydrating.  I alternated water and tailwind (available at the AS) in my bottle.  When my lips started feeling chapped, or if I had something salty to eat at an AS, I had water in my bottle.  This was to avoid having too much salt in my system.

I also learned that as long as I'm determined to finish, and I'm not broken or bleeding out, I can finish.

Training

After Hennepin and the World's Longest Turkey Trot, I took at least two-three months off.  I still ran a couple times each of those months.  I gained 25 pounds from my Henneping race weight, and was 10 pounds heavier than what I like to be.  That's where I was in June.  

I knew that I needed a month to just get into shape for my trainig, so that's what I did in June.

My training followed what I've always done: two cycles of four weeks, each week building on the previous one, with the fourth week at the same mileage of the first week.  The last cycle is three weeks long, and is followed by a four week taper.  The first week's mileage is 75% of the average of the previous 11 weeks, followed by weeks at 50% and 25%.  My last run is done seven days before the event.

Above spreadsheet also available as a stand alone page here

My average weekly mileage, pre taper, was 52.83.  Every Monday, including taper weeks, I went to the gym to strengthen my core.  I do upper and lower abs, and lower back.  I would also walk a 14 minute or quicker mile on the treadmill while I was there.
My longest run was 35 miles, which was pacing a friend at Hallucination 100.  My shortest long run was 20 miles, which was the first week of training.
This was by far the fewest number of miles I've ever done in training for an event, but it served me very well.
In addition to that, I stood while at work for the first five hours of the day.  I did this every week except for the week preceeding the race.  That week I stood for the first two hours.  That is a total of 333 hours of standing over 14 weeks.  All of that time on my feet did help. 

Worlds Longest Turkey Trot - redux

This time, let's run from Chicago to Milwaukee

Prelude

I ran from Milwaukee, WI to Chicago, IL last year, starting black Friday.  The reason for the event can be read in the preface for last year's event, found here.

Last year I had something to prove.  I had DNS (did not start) Hennepin that year due to a relapse.  I had to redeem myself.

This year, I smashed the time goal that I had set for myself at Hennepin.  This year, the WLTT was going to be a fun time with friends.  A leisurely journey from Chicago to Milwaukee, on foot.  I would see some friends that I had made last year.

If you'd like to donate to the Les Turner ALS foundation, the link is here https://goo.gl/qfYiJo.

I had trained my arse off for Hennepin, which took place 7 weeks prior.  I took a week off of running after the finish, and just planned on maintaining until the WLTT.  That would consist of 40-50 mile weeks.
As is illustrated in the following spreadsheet, my ITBS flared up one week, and my kids gave me a terrible cold another week.  This caused me to miss nine days of training.  Not a huge deal, given the laid back nature of the event.

  

The plan was for me to park my car by my friend Siva's condo.  I had met him at Hallucination 100, where I paced him his last 50 miles.
I woke up at 2am, Friday morning, and was on the road to Chicago by 2:45.
It was a 4:40 minute drive, and due to the time change from Eastern to Central, I arrived at 6:10.  Siva was planning on heading to the Bean at 7, so I watched some local Chicago news until we left.

RD Scott Kummer had posted three Google map segments prior to the event.  They totaled 89 miles.  Last year's event, from Milwaukee to Chicago, was 97 (we started more north than we would be ending).
I figured I was down for 89 miles at a leisurely pace.

The Event

Siva and I arrived at the Bean at 7:30.  There was only one other runner there at the time.  We introduced ourselves and waited for the rest of the runners.  They arrived, we posed for some pictures, got our starting instructions from RD Scott Kummer, and were on our way.

Out of Chicago (to Evanston)

The route for the first 15.6 miles

Chicago is a big city.  I mean, a real big city.  I was born and raised in Detroit, and that doesn't hold a candle to Chicago.
I had no idea when Chicago proper ended, and the suburbs began.

We had fantastic volunteers, and at least two dedicated crew cars for the duration of the event.
To be honest, I don't remember specifics of much of the event.  I hung with Rey, the friend I finished the last 20 miles of last year's event with, for most of this year's event.
We walked a lot.
A whole lot.
Rey and I had learned from last year that taking it easy in the beginning was the way to go.

So that's all I really remember about this leg.  Lots of walking.

Somewhere

Did I mention that we walked?

Evanston to Waukegan

We stopped at a restaurant named Homer's for lunch.  Nice place, a bit classier than fast-food, but not quite a sit-down restaurant.
Neither Rey nor I were hungry.  We just took a load off while everyone else ate.

On our way out, I said hello to Kiki, Alfredo's widow.  She was a crew car for the first day.  One of the nicest women I ever met.  She comes into play later in this report.

Of course, shortly after leaving Homer's, I started to get super hungry.

The interior of Homer's

  

About four miles later, one of the runners' clients (she's a running coach) was standing on the corner with a box of pizza.

Now, I've never had Chicago style pizza.  It appeared that it was probably fresh about five hours prior, but it looked DELICIOUS!  I grabbed two.  I ate nothing else for the next 15 miles because I was so full.

I already ate the first piece

Sunset comes earlier in Chicago than it does where I live in Fenton, MI.  I don't recall exactly where we were when it set, but I do remember that it was full dark when we ran through North Chicago.

Scott gave us the directive last year that we were to stick together in North Chicago, and the same held true this time.

Apparently North Chicago is a 'bad neighborhood'.  I didn't find it to be terrible.  I've been in much worse places in the depths of my addiction.

So we stuck together.

More walking.

Waukegan to When I Finished

In Waukegan, we stopped at a McDonald's for dinner.  I was the first to see the golden arches, so I was able to kick it into a semblance of a run.  I was the first to reach Kyle's SUV.  He told me that a bunch of guys had pulled a guy out of the van parked next to him, and carried him into the McDonald's.
When the rest of the crew pulled up, and that story was relayed to them, they became very reticent to enter the McD's.  As I said, I've been in worse places than North Chicago, and worse situations than some dude being dragged into a McD's.
All I wanted was some McChickens, but everyone else was dead set against going in.
Luckily, there was a restaurant across the street, Rosati's.  I hadn't eaten since the pizza I ate 15 miles prior.  I ordered a HUGE order of these bread stick things.

I ate the whole basket.  I was so stuffed.

At some point during the night, we passed the Illinois/Wisconsin border.  

I was getting tired.  Not sleepy, per se, but tired.  I had been up for ~24 hours, and had walked many, many miles.

Rey and I were both looking forward to reaching the Kenosha Running Company, in Kenosha, WI.  Brian, the owner of the store, provided an AS for us.

He had done the same thing for us last year.

I ate a bowl of instant oatmeal, then curled up on the floor for a nap.

Pretty sure Brian let us sleep for 30 minutes.

We woke up, girded ourselves, and carried on.

This was mile 60.

I want to take a minute to mention that Friday's weather was beautiful.  Sunny, with a high in the 60s (F).  The setting sun brought cooler temps, but it was still nice.

Somewhere around midnight, the wind picked up and brought cooler temps, in the 30s (F).

So it was somewhere between 4-5am, Saturday morning, when we exited Kenosha Running Company.  I fell in with Rey, and we walked some more.  It took us maybe a mile to loosen up.

We walked.

I started thinking about walking 25 more miles.  

I had no desire to do that.  We had already walked close to 50 miles already.  I told Rey that I was considering dropping at the next spot we saw the aid vehicles, mile 65.

We reached the cars finally.  I told Kiki that I was going to hop in her car to get warm and take a nap.  I asked her if she would wake me up when the runners arrived at the next stop, in five miles. 

I promptly fell asleep.

I woke up to the sunrise, and the runners already leaving.  I noticed that Rey and Siva had also dropped.

Thus ends the narrative of the event.

Postlude

I have absolutely zero regrets about stopping when I did.  I thoroughly enjoyed myself until I didn't anymore, and then I stopped.

I have nothing to prove to anyone; most importantly myself.

This event would have been much more difficult if it wasn't for the volunteers.
Thank you to:

• Kyle Gillman
• Jim Arnold
• Kiki
• Rich McCaleb
• All others I've forgotten in my sleep deprived state.  It was an honor and a pleasure.

Hennepin Hundred: The Quest for sub-24

Prelude

Since I started running 100's, the goal had been to run 100 miles in one day, or under 24 hours time.  I had attempted it twice.  I had failed to meet that goal twice.

Hennepin, 2016 was to be my third attempt.  However, due to a personal situation, I was a DNS.  So Hennepin, 2017 it was!

Hennepin is a point to point race that starts in Rock Falls, IL, and ends in Colona, IL.

I had chosen Hennepin because it was advertised as 'flat and fast'.  That, in and of itself, can lead to problems, which I will address in the training section at the end of the report.

In the month or two leading up to the race, my primary goal had switched to one of sub 23 hours.  I thought that I was totally capable of doing that.

Friday, October 6, 2017

My good friend Pete had volunteered last year to crew for me.  And my ever present running husband Kurt would be my pacer.  Pete picked me up Friday around 10 am.  We then picked up Kurt and headed to the pre-race meeting, which was held near the finish.

After that, we headed back to the hotel I had booked for us near the starting line.  The first order of business was to go over instructions for Pete and Kurt.  I had made up a spread sheet for them. 

I also went over what was in my race bin, and in the specific bags within it.

I made the mistake of mentioning to Kurt that if I could get to the 50 mile mark in 9 hours, I believed a sub 22 was possible.  That'll come into play later.

We all had a great time cutting up like a bunch of teenagers.  We made a trip to the Walmart across the street for some items we had forgotten, and were able to get to bed by 830 CDT (the three of us live in EDT).

Race Day

Hennepin is a point to point hundred, with a 5.2 mile section that's run twice.  It's shaped like an upside-down "T"

You start at the top, run down to the base of the T, turn left, then turn around at the star.  You then run straight for the duration of the race.  It follows a canal for the entirety of the course.
This is the .gpx file from my run

I was the first to wake up, at 430.  I had never before had 6 hours of good sleep prior to an event, so I decided to get dressed and get myself ready.
I had put aside the clothes that I was going to wear to the race a month prior.  My 'business handling' outfit is what I called it.
I had purchased a Greater Flint Track Club shirt from the local running store.  That was the only thing I wore that was colorful.  I had on grey undershorts, black race shorts, and a grey headband which had skulls all over it.  I also chose the most subdued pair of shoes I had trained in: my black and red Altra Torin 2.0.

Pete and Kurt woke up shortly after I.  We got ourselves ready, then packed up the car.  The hotel was serving breakfast, so we stopped in to eat real quick.  We then headed to the start line, 15 minutes away.

Kurt, Pete, and I

I remember telling them on that ride that I was, "calm, cool, and collected".  That too was a change for me.  Usually I'm a ball of nervous energy.  But I had complete faith in God and my training.  And being anxious was a waste of energy.
We got to the start line about 30 minutes before the gun went off.  I'm glad that we did.  They only had four port-a-johns, so I stood in line for ten minutes to empty my bladder.
I had two GPS watches with me: my Garmin 310 and my Suunto Ambit.  The former was to track my pace until I picked Kurt up at mile 47.1.  The latter I had set to track the entire run.  (it's the one at the top of the following list)

UPDATE

I stitched together the GPX files from Pete's watch and my watch, then uploaded it to Strava.  Here's the entire GPS data from the race.

I powered on my Garmin, and it wouldn't start the process of locating satellites.  I started freaking out a bit at this point, because keeping track of my pace for the first half was key to me.  Pete saved the day by breaking out his 310.
The plan was for me to get the majority of my calories during the race from Fellrnr's Go Juice.  I had one hand held filled with that, another handheld with water.  I would drink a full water between every aid station (AS), and a full Go Juice every other.
I made my way to the starting chute, and threaded through the crowd gathered there to the front.  I was there to handle business, after all.  I was not there for a good time.  I had brought my two mp3 players to listen to until I picked Kurt up.  I put in the punk rock one, the gun started, and I was off.

Kurt and I pre-start

Pete and I pre-start

The report will be broken down into 25 mile segments.

That's how I remember it

Miles 1 - 25

All I recall about these miles is towards the end.  I was well rested from my taper, so I went out there fairly fast.  I was holding a pace in the low 9s.

Before I had reached mile 10, my right quad started to get really tight.  It wasn't affecting my gait, so I thought "well, guess I'll be living with this for the next 90 miles".

The original plan called for me to run to the second AS, then start my cycle of running five miles, and walking two.  I don't rightly recall when I started walking, but I believe it was at AS 3, mile 14.9.  I know I only walked a half of a mile, then started running again.  I pushed quite hard through the first 25.  I finished this quarter in an average pace of 9:59.  I walked less than two miles during this 25 miles.
I rewarded myself with a half mile walk.

All of my AS stops were under one minute in length.  I would see the AS up ahead, finish the bottle (or bottles if it was time to fill up the Go Juice).  If it was a Go Juice AS, I would have the powder dumped into the bottle.
I was in and out of every AS in less than one minute.

I started experiencing some GI distress during these 25 miles.  While my stomach wasn't upset, and I didn't have the runs, I found myself having to poop pretty often.  I ended up pooping eight times during the race.  That was 20 minutes that I was not able to make up.

Miles 26 - 50

Some pictures from the beginning of these 25 miles, courtesy of Kurt:

Taken as I was pulling into an AS which had crew access.  I'm always a ham for a photo.

I reached the 26.2 mark in 4:25.  I knew that I pushed through that first 25 real hard, and that I would have to throttle it back if I wanted to avoid burning out.  The weather was great.  It was in the low 70s temperature wise, but totally cloudy.  I was still sweating quite a bit, but was staying hydrated and replenishing my electrolytes adequately through the Go Juice.  

Miles 30 - 40 were rough for me.  I was trying to find a sweet spot in my run/walk ratio.  I tried 2.5/0.5, and 2/0.5.  All of those required me pushing a bit harder than I wanted towards the end of the run period.  I ended up talking to my dad, who passed in March, quite a bit during these miles.
"C'mon dad.  It's just you and me.  We got this old man"
I still miss him.
I had never run a race where I was so focused.  Normally during a 100, I'll fall in with another runner(s), and talk to them until I or them fall behind.
That was not the case today.  I had my music on, and I was just focused on moving as fast as I could.

I don't recall where in this 25 miles I asked Pete for a shirt.  I had taken mine off soon after the start.  I was starting to chafe in my right armpit from the salt I was sweating off.  It wasn't horrible, but it was getting a bit uncomfortable.  I knew the exact shirt I wanted.  As I pulled into whichever AS it was, I said
"I need the short sleeved tech with the yellow stripe"
It was fairly snug to my body, which is what I wanted to alleviate the rubbing.

I was finally able to settle into a 1.5/0.5 ratio.  My walking pace was still around 13:30 min/mile.  I have only my training to thank for that.  (Training section at the end of the report).  My running pace was creeping up into the 11 min mark, but I was still doing great.  Every time I saw Pete and Kurt, they would update me as to how much time I had gained on my ETA listed on the spreadsheet.

A couple of times when I pulled up to an AS with crew access, Kurt would ask me how I was doing.  He told me later that evening (or maybe early Sunday morning) when we were running together, that my response sounded like this

He was very concerned that I was getting wonky due to a lack of electrolytes.  In reality, it was just stopping that was the issue.  I was pushing hard the entire way: running and walking.  Coming to a complete stop was stopping the extra cardiovascular pump, and all of a sudden my brain would be minus however much blood. 

He insisted I find something salty to eat, so I grabbed some bacon they had there in ziplock bags.  I grabbed a couple of bags to go, and carried on.

At some point in this 25, it started misting out.  It was quite welcome.  When the precipitation got harder, I told Pete at an AS that I needed my running hat.  I love running in the rain, but really dislike having it get in my eyes.

At the AS at mile 32.1 I saw Mike Pfefferkorn, the RD of the Indiana Trail 100 (IT).  Kurt and I have been involved with the IT since it's inaugural year in 2013.  It was good to see him.  I remember telling him

"I'm here to CRUSH this course!"

really loud.

Leaving that AS, I thought how good it would be to see it again at mile 67.3. 

I had informed Pete and Kurt that when I picked up Kurt at mile 47.1, I wanted to change my shoes and socks.  When I reached that point, I sat down for the only time during the race.  Man that hurt to sit.

They got some baby wipes, cleaned my feet off, reapplied silicone lubricant, put clean socks on me, and my Altra Olympus.  The thick soles on those bad boys were a welcome relief.

I hit 50 miles in ~9 hours and 30 minutes.  A new 50 mile PR for me.

Kurt and I ran the 2.6 miles to the 100 mile turnaround.  I talked his ear off for quite a while.  I was feeling pretty starved for conversation.  I recall that I told him that if I missed my goal by 20 minutes, I had only the time that I had spent pooping to blame.  

As I said, I used Pete's watch for the first 47.5.  Here are screen shots of my splits for those miles.

Miles 51 - 75

I remember Kurt telling me at mile 56 something about the pace that we would have to maintain to hit sub 22 hours.  That's Kurt.  He's an engineer, and always feels the need to do math.

To be fair, I was still able to do simple math, but whatever it was that he said sounded like an explanation of vector spaces.

He explained a bit later that as long as we were able to maintain a one hour pace for every four miles traveled, we could sub 22.  So every four miles I would give him a mark, and he would consult his wrist watch and tell me how much time we had gained on that finish.  We were doing pretty good.

It was pretty nice to hit that AS again at 67.3.  I couldn't let myself think about how many miles I had left, so I focused on two other numbers:

1. The number of AS left (20 total)
2. The number of miles left in our four mile cycle

Night came during these 25 miles.  Kurt and I just kept plugging away.  I maintained the 1.5/0.5 run/walk ratio as long as I could.  At some point, we switched it to a 1/0.5.  Both the run and walk pace were slowing down, but I was giving it everything I had.

I remember getting sleepy at some point.  I was still able to maintain our pace, but all I wanted was to lie down and take a nap.  I had brought some Zip Fizz along.  These things are awesome.  They have eight times the amount of B12 than 5-Hour Energy has.  I added one to my water bottle, and it pepped me right up.

Miles 76 - Finish (100.3)

I was still giving Kurt a mark every four miles.  At one point, we had built up a 14 minute cushion on the sub 22 hour finish.  We were still doing a 1/0.5 run/walk.  I think our cushion dropped to 11 or 12 minutes, but we were still pushing it.  

Pete knew that we were trying for a sub 22.  He kept telling me when I saw him that we were good.  That we'd make it no problem.  I remember thinking each time
"Dude, shut up."
I'm a firm believer that in sports, all jinxes are valid.  I didn't want him talking about it for two reasons:

1. I didn't want him to jinx it
2. This had gotten hard

At some point in the 70s or early in the 80s, I remember telling Kurt
"At this moment, at this point in the race, doing what we're doing is not a problem" referring to the run/walk that we were able to maintain.  

For at least 30 miles after I picked him up, we maintained right around one hour for every four miles run.  That was blowing my mind for this stage of the game.

I had Pete get me some BCAA with caffeine to put in my water bottle.  The caffeine was a huge help for keeping me alert and focused.

At the  mile 78 AS, Kurt and I were both ready for some coffee.  The volunteers told us they didn't have any, but that there was some at the next one, at mile 82.1.  There wasn't any there either.  One volunteer did have some chocolate covered espresso beans which she shared with us, but that didn't really help us too much.

We finally got our coffee at the AS at 86.7.  We each slammed a cup of tepid coffee, had Pete put some of the caffeine laden BCAA powder in our bottles, and continued on.

The last time we saw Pete on the course was at the AS at mile 93.1.  We both dropped off our hand-helds with Pete.  Our cushion at this point was maybe about 10 minutes.  Pete again was just overjoyed to tell me how I had a sub 22 in the bag.  

I asked a volunteer what the actual distance of the race was.  I knew it was a bit longer than 100, but I didn't know how much more.  Those extra tenths might mean the difference between sub 22 and sub 23.  He said
"It's actually closer to 101 than it is to 100"
That took whatever air that I had left in my balloon out.  Kurt and I started back on the course, and I told him what he had said.  Kurt said that if it was 101, we'd be really hard pressed to make the sub 22 goal.  We would have to make up some time.

I had pushed as hard as I could to that point.  I tried to keep up the 1/0.5 run/walk, but I was only able to make it .6 miles into the run portion before I told him that  I had to walk.  I decided that I would do a 0.5/0.5 run/walk until the finish.  Whatever my time was going to be, I knew that I had left everything I had out on the course.

Kurt and I spent quite a bit of the next 3.4 miles until the final AS bitching about this.  The turn around for the 100 miles was 1.3 miles from the AS.  Kurt informed me that someone had told him it was specifically 1.36 miles.  Why not make the course exactly 100 miles?  The turnaround was just in some arbitrary spot on the trail.
What the hell?!?!

We decided to just keep on doing our 0.5/0.5 run/walk until we reached the last AS, at which point we would find out exactly how long we had to go.

We reached it.  They had a laminated sheet that said
3.7 miles until Finish.

That would make the race 100.3 miles.  That meant we still had a chance.

We both asked the volunteers if that was correct.  They said yes.

I slammed a cup of water, and we moved out.

Kurt informed me that it was going to be tight.  We had about a three minute cushion at this point, and that was with us maintaining a 15 minute/mile pace.  I told him that I was only able to do what we had been doing, referring to our run/walk ratio.  Whatever I finished in, I would be happy with.

We came into the town of Colona, IL, where the finish was located.  

We were running the first half of each mile, walking the second half.  I knew that Kurt would want me to run the last mile into the finish.  All I could think was
"What if my watch is incorrect?  What if we think it should be one mile, but it's really 1.2?"

I did not think that I had it in me to run that extra point whatever it might be.

We reached one mile to go, and Kurt said
"Come on.  Let's run it in."

I stopped.  Put my hands on my knees.  Hunched over.  Took a deep breath to gather myself.  And started to run.

We saw the finish about .5 miles away, but I couldn't gauge how far it actually was.  When we finally saw the finish chute with the running time reading 21:5x:xx, I couldn't tell what those x's were.  (I don't run with my glasses, so it was all blurry).

I don't know how fast my pace was for that last quarter mile, but I gave it everything I had left.

The Finish

According to the results page, I finished in 21:53:22.  29th out of 126 finishers.  

I remember saying
"I'm going to sit down now"
I got tremendously light headed upon stopping.  Then Kurt decided to give me a huge bear hug from behind.  I thought
"Great.  I'm going to end this race by falling on my face."

I did have to bend over and put my hand on the ground, but I did not fall on my face.

I walked over to the picnic table by the finish line, and was handed my 

100 miles / One Day

buckle.

This.  It was all for this.

The three of us posed for a picture

Postlude

This was the most difficult thing that I have ever physically done.  I never have to do this again.  I remember saying
"I can't believe I did it."
A few times sitting there.  It still hasn't hit me yet.  Not really.

I would like to think that I could have done this without the help of Pete and Kurt, but I'm not sure.  They were such an integral part of this story.

Lessons Learned

• You have to train to walk
• I know this sounds ludicrous, but for almost one full year, during my long runs, I trained to walk fast.  Considering I was able to maintain a sub-14 minute walking pace for the first 50 miles, I believe it paid huge dividends.
• Pushing the entirety of 100 miles is really, really, really hard
• I've heard it said that you cannot bank time in an ultra. That is, if you go out too fast in the beginning, you'll just end up burning yourself out in the end. I believe I was able to bank some serious time in the first 25 miles. I can't know if I could've finished any faster with a more conservative approach in the beginning, but I feel I left everything I had on the course, while having just enough to finish 
• Having a dedicated crew for such an effort is a tremendous benefit
• Stay focused.  Eyes on the prize and all that.  If you do that, nothing can stand in your way
• Thank God I never have to do that again

Here ends the race report.  The next section is how I trained for this event.

Pictures from the event

Scott Laudick was there providing his excellent photography services.  You can find all of the shots he took during the event here.  Here are the ones specific to me.

Training

That's my training for Hennepin.  Normally I do 11 weeks of training, plus a four week taper.  Because I had already had a great base from the VM 150 training, I did only seven weeks of training, with a three week warm up to that.

Before I started training, both Kurt and my wife suggested that I not do what I normally do, which is a ridiculous amount of miles.  My theory is that if some is good, more is better.
I would easily turn in 300+ mile months when training for an event.
This time, I heeded their advice.  I kept my weekly mileage in the low- to mid- 70s.  I was able to get a supported training run of 50 miles in twice while pacing friends to their 100 mile finishes.

I also did my core strengthening exercises every Monday at the gym.  Upper and lower abs and lower back.

Another key part of the training was weight loss.  I invariably weigh between 180-185 pounds.  I knew that weighing 5-10 lbs less, 175, would be a great boon in realizing my goal.
I didn't do any kind of special diet.  I just logged everything that I ate, and kept the caloric count under 1770 per day.  Regardless of if I had run or not.
Each of my weekday runs were done on an empty stomach.
I lost 13 pounds in three months.  I started the race at 172.
The caloric restriction was not pleasant.  I was hungry all the time.
But now I get to eat
ALL
THE FOOD!!!!