Sulphur Springs Race Report – 50 miles

May 23, 2015

After 20 weeks of physical training and mental conditioning the big day finally arrived.  I was excited when the alarm went off at 3:15am on Saturday morning.  The weather was going to be perfect; I felt prepared and had a solid nutrition plan.  The biggest unknown was that this was an 80km trail race, my first ultra-marathon, and the longest I had ran during training was 50km.  Every step of the final 30km was going to be unchartered territory.

Pre-race

I arrived at the race at 4:45am in plenty of time to register and get my gear in place before the 6am start.  My plan was to proactively tape my feet and change socks between every 20km lap as my biggest fear was blisters leading to a DNF. 

Lap 1 – By the Book

I had been thinking about lap 1 for 5 months.  I had everything planned out for this lap – 145 bpm heartrate max, walk the hills, 80 grams of carbs per hour, drink to thirst, learn the course (so I can run on autopilot later in the day), and run my own race.  Temperature was 5 degrees for the start, perfect for shorts, long sleeve shirt, and thin gloves. 

This lap went exactly as planned, and it helped that I had ran the course twice in training so knew what to expect.  The main loop was lots of fun, especially the single-track descent to the river crossing.  And the 7km lollipop was a good early test of my legs, constant ascent for the first half, then downhill on the way back in.  I really held back, as I didn’t want to trash my glutes on the ascent or quads on the descent too early.

My goal for lap 1 was 2:30 and was happy to come within 4 minutes of this.  I ran my own lap and didn’t get caught up with what other racers were doing. 

Lap 1 time 2 hours 26 minutes

Lap 2 – It was the worst of times, it was the best of times

After a quick transition to refill nutrition and water I was down the big hill for my second lap.  It was slowly starting to warm up and still perfect running conditions, dry and cool.  From listening to hundreds of ultra-running podcasts I decided to get ahead of my nutrition.  The body can typically absorb between 50-80 grams of carbs per hour.  However, in anticipation of stomach shutdown later in the race some people take in more carbs early to get the fuel in their system.  I did this, meaning I overdid this. 

On lap 1 I consumed 100 grams of carbs per hour.  They say nothing new on race day, and I had never tried this before, so I don’t know why I thought this was a good idea on my first ultra.  For the first 10km of lap 2 I battled heavy GI issues, and a stomach that felt like it was full of lead.  Luckily I recognized this, stopped eating, and drank lots water to dilute my gut.  My apologies to anyone running behind me on this lap as I worked out my indigestion! 

After about 10km into lap 2 I worked the excess carbs into my system.  I was immensely relieved to get through this and learned my lesson, the rest of the race I was going to eat smart.  I was eating Clif Bars, Bloks and Gels and alternating between Gu and water in my hand-held water bottle.

By the time I got to the 7km lollipop I was feeling really good, especially having come through a bad (self-inflicted) patch.  The climbs were fun and I kept my heart rate in my 145 bpm MAF zone.  On the descent I decided to open it up and make up some of the time I lost dealing with my gut.  I love descending fast, and gave my quads an early test.  Then the inevitable happened, my toe caught a root and I went down – hard.  Luckily my hand-held water bottle took 90% of the impact and spared me from any physical injury.  I was covered head to toe in dirt but got up and kept going barely missing a stride.  However, now I was going to concentrate on the trail and not look too far ahead. 

My goal for lap 2 was 2:30.  I was definitely slower for the first half of the lap due to GI issues, then faster on the second half with renewed running vigor.  I finished the first half of the race in less than 5 hours.  I briefly thought that I could finish sub-10, and then realized there was no way on earth I could pull of a neutral split.   

Lap 2 time 2 hours 32 minutes

Lap 3 – Burning matches

I took a longer transition as I changed socks, taped my feet, put on sunscreen and refreshed nutrition.  And I took 2 minutes to send a couple texts and check my Clash of Clans, then back down the hill for lap 3.  The racers had thinned out and I found myself running alone for some time which I enjoyed. 

After a quick bathroom break one of the 100 mile runners caught up with me and we ran together and chatted.  This was my first ultra but I’ve immersed myself in the sport and had lots of questions for him about how and why anyone would want to run 100 miles.  I knew I was running faster than I should but I didn’t look at pace or heart rate and decided to hold on for as long as I could.  After about 5km running fast with him I stopped to walk, matches were burnt and I was only half way through lap 3.

I hit a big low point.  I was alone again, I struggled on the hills, was slowing on the flats, and my knees were hurting on the descents.  Plus my stomach turned and I couldn’t take any more sugar – no more bars, bloks, gels or Gu.  The next 10km was really hard, but I knew that Christina and the kids would be there when I finished the lap.  The lollipop was killer – painful on the ascent and slow on the descent. 

As I crested the big hill I saw Christina, Brigid and the kids.  Darien ran across the finish line with me, just like 7 months ago at the Ironman.  However, this time I still had 20km to go. 

I didn’t have a goal for lap 3, but all things considered I was happy and surprised to finish the lap in less than 3 hours.

Lap 3 time 2 hours 52 minutes.

Lap 4 – Social, suffering, then a fast finish

I talked to my kids as I got ready for the final lap.  My wife Christina was pacing me for the final 20km so we set off down the hill together.  I was so happy to run with my wife, especially since we never get to run together as someone always has to stay with the kids!  I talked nonstop for the first 5km and told her every detail from the preceding 8 hours.  My gut was still off sugar and I had switched to real food at the aid stations.  Boiled potatoes, cookies, chips and cheese sandwiches gave me the required energy without any GI distress. 

After 1 hour into lap 4 the pain and suffering returned with a vengeance and eclipsed the joy of running with my wife.  I stopped talking, shut down mentally, and spiraled into another low point.  The hills were killing me and I was barely managing a slow jog on the flats.  The mile splits from my GPS watch had gone from 12 minutes to 16 minutes per mile.  Leaving the final aid station and heading into the last 7km I knew that the final hour was really going to hurt. 

The climbs on the lollipop were killing my glutes and hamstrings.  Thanks to my long legs I was still able to drop a couple of the other 50 mile runners on the ascent.  For months I had proactively trashed my quads with trail descents and I planned to hammer the final 2km downhill.  As we approached the turn into the descent I asked Christina to stay behind me, then I took off.  I knew the finish was only 3km away and my mind took control of my body.  My muscles, joints, bones and gut stopped hurting and I ran hard at a 5 min/km pace the entire way.  I was getting close, and the realization that I would finish in less than 11 hours fueled my pace.  I wouldn’t have bet I’d be able to run this fast after 77km and I loved every step. 

Christina and I actually managed to jog up the final massive hill and I was ecstatic to finish my first 50 mile ultra-marathon in less than 11 hours.  Paul was there to cheer me across the line and got the great finisher pics. 

Lap 4 time 3 hours 1 minute.

50 mile (80km) final time 10 hours, 53 minutes, 30 seconds.

Post-race

I sat on a rock and celebrated with Christina, Paul, Brigid and the kids.  Overall it was a near perfect day; I enjoyed the highs, suffered and pulled through the lows, and loved the fast finish.  I have a significant appreciation for what it takes to complete an ultra and will certainly do another one, but probably not until 2016!