Getting the Monkey Off My Back.

On Saturday November 18th I decided to spend a day at my favorite Metro Park with one goal - finish a 50-mile run. I had attempted the 50-mile distance twice before, coming up short both times (finishing 41 and 38 miles, respectively.) I showed up at just past 6:30 in the morning and started off shortly there after.

The first few miles set the tone for the day - rain, thunder, and lightning. I had my headlamp, but in the downpour, it did little good. Still, I had a great water proof jacket on and enjoyed the start of the run. I passed a park ranger and I was worried that he was going to tell me to seek shelter. Instead, he just gave me a wave and I waved back as I passed. As the sun rose (or more accurately as it got lighter out) the temperature started rising and I returned to my car after about 4 miles to ditch my sweater and long pants for shorts and a t-shirt, keeping the water proof jacket.

OK - maybe more water resistant than water proof

It was also then that I realized something key - I left my bag of Gu and honey stinger waffles at home. I spent the next loop doing some math. I had three PBJ sandwiches (400 calories each), 3 protein bars (230 calories each), two Zone perfect bars (200 calories each), and two Gatorade bottles (200 calories each) in my car. I also had a bag of mini Three Musketeers and a bag of Swedish fish. All in all, this was well over 3500 calories. My goal was 150 calories at the aid (car) station and another 50-75 during each of the 4~ish mile loops. This added up to about 2500 calories. I figured things would be as fine as they could be. Besides, I’ve attempted two fifty-milers on gu and waffles and those didn’t exactly end as planned. Worse case scenario, if I really wanted (or needed) more traditional fuel, FrontRunner Worthington was a (scary) four-mile run down highway 23.

It was all of this math and thinking of contingency plans that got me through laps two and three.

There were three main loops throughout the park that I had planned: One that took me down to the observation deck via the overlook path, one that lead out to big meadows via Dripping Rock path, and one that headed to big meadows via the multi-use path. Each lap was between 4 and 6 miles long. I figured if I did each separate loop 3 times I wouldn’t repeat anything too often.

map of the park

Honestly, I felt my first 50k (31 miles) was pretty solid. My nutrition plan, though off from what I had prepped for, was right on. I had a quarter of a PBJ with some Gatorade each time I got to the car, then a quarter of a protein bar during the lap with some candy thrown in for fun. This turned into about 150-200 calories every hour-ish.

I finished the first 50k in about 7 hours and 20 minutes, just over 14-minute pace. This was nearly perfect as my goal for the first 50k was a 14:30 pace. With the time I had left before the park closed, I would need to pace at about 19:30-minute miles to finish before getting kicked out.

Things started to slow down after 50k. Miles were definitely taking longer. 15-minute pace turned into 16-minute miles. Still … I was moving forward. Mentally I was just trying to get to mile 37 in about 9 hours. That was when I would pick up a pacer… My very good friend / coach / running partner Erika was back in town and said she’d put a few miles in with me.  Mentally I just had to keep moving until she got there.

It was so amazing to have someone there to share the really crappy of the suckiest miles. She spent about 2 hours with me and made sure I got through to about mile 43. I’m so thankful for that time - it got me through the absolute worst miles and certainly helped me complete my mission. She had to leave as the rain started picking up again, and I was left with a bit more than a 10k to go.

By this point, I had been moving for 11 hours. I had 7 miles to go and could pace at 20-minute miles to finish by 7:45 pm (sunset was at 5:15 pm, the park closed at 8:00 pm.)

Not that I saw the sun at all... This was the weather for my last few miles.

The rain became a deluge for the final stretch. The temperature had dropped, and I was out of gloves. I used a spare pair of socks for my hands. At mile 47 my Garmin indicated low battery. I had prepared for this with a charging block and cable, but with the storm using this was not an option. I got back to my car at mile 48, stopped my watch, and did my last two with my phone tracking my distance. Not that I needed it - I knew the one mile out and back mark. I finished with an overall distance of 50.02 miles in 12 hours, 43 minutes, and 22 seconds, pacing overall at 15 minutes and 16 seconds per mile. This was by far the most ALL THE FEELS run I have ever done. On my feet for nearly 13 hours (earning nearly 100,000 steps along the way) was like nothing else in my history. I can think of preciously few things I have done for 13 hours straight.

The “why” of this run is a whole different post. Feel free to get in touch with me and I’ll gladly share my thoughts on that… until then time to rest, refuel and see what is in my future. I have three weeks of downtime for sure, then who knows what I’ll throw onto the schedule!

Thanks for reading.