Race Report(s): well that was a hoot....

.....but this life is not for me anymore.

no, i'm not retired; but despite having the freedom to do so, I'm just not inclined to put so much energy into running long distances in obscure locales for silly outings anymore. 

grab a chair, maybe a growler of a hard-to-drink stout or sour, because my rationale is stupid long and takes place over a series of months.  sorry not sorry.

ever since Hardrock got canceled this year, I've been bored out of my mind and needed something to do for a couple of months prior to next year's event to pass the time.  given i had already requalified for WSER with Bighorn and had no intention of returning to UTMB, i really had two options that would be somewhat productive ('productive' also meaning I should be able to destroy a few shoes while doing whatever I pick)--

• work on achieving my BQ time.  it would have been a tall order given I’ve seem to hit a wall at 5min/k at that distance and i didn't think that i would have made fast enough progress prior to needing to restart trail running for Hardrock.  
• work on timed events.  similarly i seem to hit a wall at 100mi/24h--and while i have no aspirations for developing my skills at this game, i figured this would be a good way of working on strengthening some repetitive motion stuff.

alas i went with the second option.

Chapter 1: "Put your box of shit in your spot on the loop and go "

i picked an obscure 24h run way in the middle of nowhere--the Badgerland Striders 6/12/24h just outside of Milwaukee because why the fuck not, and it was scheduled for Labor Day weekend.  it takes place in the vicinity of the Kettle Moraine 100, something that was on my list of things to do when i'm bored because of its inclusion in the Midwest Slam.  but i digress.

my goals were as follows--

A. 125mi
B. 100mi
C. figger out what the fuck is wrong with me

so no pressure, really. 

• -1
• i woke up an hour prior to the start because i had my airbnb planted six minutes out from the start line, and had unheated Dinty Moore beef stew for breakfast along with a banana and some yogurt because why the fuck not.  strolling over to the park, i set up my chair and bag opposite the aid station as i didn't have a tent or canopy.  in line with my A goal i set my watch's virtual pacer to 6.25mph.
• at the prerace briefing i learned there was a 72' climb on every lap--even though this was clearly written on the website.  come on, leo.
• I set my watch to pace me for 6.25mph, which was overly ambitious for someone looking to go over 120mi with a giant fucking hill on each lap.
• on deck were my POS Salomon S-lab Ultra 2's with outer upper breaches on each shoe, destined for the bin after~50ish mi.  these would be flipped 12h in for Hoka Mafate 2's.  
• 0
• sure enough, I would remain 5s back of pace at each lap, going down to 25s on the uphills and down to 5s while back on the flat.  I turned my pacer off at the end of the hour as I knew I had to run by feel or risk burning the candle faster.  
• we started counter-clockwise, which meant the climb was more gradual--with most of the climb right off the bat and a short 15' section just shy of the middle of the lap.  I ran all the hills on this hour but I knew I had to flip a walking break in here somewhere.
• there was a hilarious trenching work section where the ground suddenly switched from bark mulch to river rock.  
• I didn't stop the entire hour except to pound electrolyte pills, but still averaged just under 10k.
• 1
• 6/12h runners entered the fray, so I shut off my propensity to hunt.  which is a first. 
• 3
• going clockwise, the climb was steeper and but nestled further away from the start/finish.  this could bode well for walking breaks.
• 5
• the RD, Robert, is an XC coach and runner himself and was open to any request, no matter how ludicrous.  to test this I asked him to bring me a beer for hour 23, to which he opened his fridge and showed me his stash...and told me that all I had to do was show up. 
• 7
• sub sandwiches arrived, but it would be another 2h before I could make room for one.  The washrooms were located 40-50 yards off course but I thought it’d be too far for regular visits so I elected to let my stomach call the shots as to what I could eat. 
• 12
• YAY SHOE CHANGE AND A CAFFEINE PILL.  FUCK YEAH LETS DANCE
• PIZZA TOO?!  
• 15
• ran too hard with my newfound comfort and my IT bands locked up.  morton stretch and massage roller were both ineffective.  gonna be a long nine hours of waddling.
• 18
• figured out that if I threw my elbows out on the uphill and deployed effeminate t-rex arms on the downhill, that would take the edge off and get me back below 15min miles.  hilarity ensued.  
• in my haste to get moving I totally stopped drinking but kept eating.  but at least it's drizzling now?
• 22
• I knew the leader had close to 30mi on me at this point but from what I could surmise, there was a late charge coming from 3rd place on my slow ass.  some quick math (yes I was that awake) meant that I would have a 7mi delta on him that would likely deteriorate to 4mi by the end of the race.  get off your laurels, leo. 
• 23
• I was back to 20min miles for some time now but Robert had set up a [flat] alleyway along the start/finish for runners to clock partial laps if they didn't have confidence to do full laps after a certain time.  I managed to clock two more ascents before starting these partials at around 23:41....but not before asking for a Shock Top to shuffle on the partials.
• 24
• My watch read 98.5mi.  goddammit.
• Obviously I was quite disappointed relative to the shitshow that was my last timed event but I still managed to squeak out a 2^nd place finish.  I promptly drove back to the Airbnb and went to bed. 

by the numbers:

• placement: 2/25
• distance: 98.335mi
• D+: 6696'
• photos taken of me mid-race: 0

shit i have to do for my next race--

• bring moar shoes [to throw out]
• by bringing less food.  given i don't really do gels i can pick up a lot of my solid foods when i land at a grocery store
• ideally these shoes should be more maximalist--my feet after 12h were really beat up wearing S/lab Ultra 2's.  looking at my inventory I will probably focus on old Hokas and Altras.  
• i'm honestly contemplating bringing my hoka hiking boots for when shit hits the fan
• learn to release my muscles myself.  yes it's all in the thumbs.  
• figure out what the fuck is going on with my right glute as this has been nagging me since bighorn. i have a feeling i know what it is but if i'm right it won't be a quick fix.  
• (I fractured my left metatarsal back in 2013 and ran right through it in hokas like someone with an addiction issue)
• remember to bring a waterproof bag.
• remember to drink, this cramping sure sounds like dehydration
• and especially if I take a caffeine pill--it sounds like metabolism is slowed down if nothing's dissolving it
• remember to breathe

Chapter 2: "Since we had zero fun last time we're going to double it and see what happens"

ahh yes, vermont in the fall.  i had never been to new england for fall foliage so the beebe farm 48 was just a dumb excuse to bathe in it all.  I landed in Hartford the day before, picked up some shit up at REI and made the trek north to Manchester where my AirBnB was.  

not going to lie, I didn't really have a good sleep throughout the week before so my goals were as follows:

1. retirement party for my Altra Instinct 1.5's and Hoka Speedgoats.  in an ideal world i'd run these for 8h/less than 50mi and then throw them out.
2. be present for all 48h.  sure, there may be a nap here and there but don't tap out early.
3. learn to control impulses and suppress the ability to hunt.  this was perfect here as there would be a 24h start when I started, plus another 24h start on the second day.  

• -2
• the course was around a farm that was home to the Vermont Summer Festival horse jumping extravaganza, with a loop that traces the perimeter of the facility and with the timing mats/aid station perched atop a 20' hill.  there was some distance between the aid station and the timing mat, so every six hours when the direction changed, you had to do an extra loop headed in the other direction, which meant that every 12 hours you had to do a long 2x.87mi loop without being able to hit the aid station.  good times.
• there were portapotties along the course EVERYWHERE.  I felt a relief being able to shit on demand and pretty much eat whatever I want, whenever I want.  
• like an idiot, I parked my car at the top of a t-intersection without figuring out where the course tangent was.  this would add a couple dozen meters every hour every time I needed electrolyte/a massage roll.  
• -1
• I was parked two spots over from another Chevy Cruze but with Quebec plates—the owner introduced himself as Pablo from Montreal, and a representative of Canada over the last few years on the 24h circuit. He had set the CR at last year’s race, so I elected to ensure I would stay out of his way.
• The start was uneventful—I elected to start from the back but ended up stuck behind a few folks carrying full-blown hydration packs and ended up picking up the pace…..again.   

• 6
• somehow I ended up in first place.  back the fuck off, leo.  I later learned that Pablo had eased off from a swelling ankle and was playing it safe (he had a 30 day treadmill bid scheduled in January). 

#fueledbyramen

• 15
• And right on cue, the cramping started.  The shuffling started shortly after that and soon I was pushing under 5mph.

i'm not smiling from joy

• 17
• Pablo found me and convinced me to hit the warming hut cots for a couple of hours.  Whatever you burn through on the first 24h, you’re not getting back. 
• 19
• I didn’t actually sleep, the propane heater ran out at around 4am but I was able to get my feet elevated for a couple of hours. 
• 20



morning!

• Got back out there at 5am but went back to bed for sunrise.  A gentleman named Arun from India had taken 1^st, which was a welcome relief (and he would retain that position for the rest of that race). 

• 24
• Was able to jog with the starters of the 2^nd day but it got somewhat annoying saying ‘good job’ or something to that effect to eleventy bajillion folks passing you at breakneck speed. 
• 27
• finally broke 100mi and then promptly took a half hour siesta (before lunch lol).  fuck you, my body clock's fucked up already but also the temperature was starting to creep up on the forecast high of 78. 
• 29
• On the bright side, the cup noodles started coming out.  I’d probably eat 8 of these over a hiking lap over the next 19 hours. 
• 31
• I lucked out and was an RMT's first patient that day.  she was a godsend and released my quads, to which I promptly celebrated by running around with a hobby horse and broke out a sweat in a sub-10min mi.
• Pablo had tapped out after 100mi as the swelling was now full blown and he didn’t want to risk injury, but was now hanging out with the volunteers. 
• 36
• I’m pretty sure this speed lasted all of 2h before regressing back to 3-4mph hours.  with the sun setting again I decided to break out the last 12h into 3h segments where I’d nap for the first 30-60min and the shuffle the rest.  This actually made the time go by faster.
• 40
• Arun finally slowed down and introduced himself.  He was a previous participant of Sri Chinmoy’s runs and after speaking with him about his previous exploits, I definitely realized I was not going to catch him for the rest of the race.
• 42
• I had now slid down to 3OA/2GP but I was weirdly content with it.  The ladies’ leader had 3 laps on me but I let it go.  
• The night was freakishly warm and a gentle wind had started. 

i take ramen very seriously

• 45
• And now I was 4OA/2GP but she was only a lap in front of me.  Regrettably this lady, Claire, found me at the aid station and kept me socializing with her for the next two hours while hiking, so I couldn’t really do anything about my pace.
• 46
• 5OA/3GP was three laps back after we both took a nap at the same time but was now putting on a solid jogging pace.  I knew he couldn’t catch me as long as I kept moving but it was still hard work trying to hang with Claire.
• 47
• I finally took my morning dump and let Claire go, but realizing the time I started running again.  I budgeted 13min mi for what time I had left and surprisingly started inching towards sub-10min loops, despite a stupid gale starting.
• I was now starting to pass mostly everyone (but a few determined 24h runners) and managed to pass Claire with 15mins left in the day.  Which meant that if I wanted to come back up to 3OA, I’d have to pass her again before she crossed the timing map.

where were these heel whips three hours ago

• I passed her by 6s with 4min left in the day but the wind had blown all the partial lap markers down so the timing crew now said that they weren’t counting partials.  As such we both finally retired back to the food, where Pablo was making bacon for breakfast. 

no i didn't run my last lap in onitsuka tigers

if you haven't figured it out yet, i'm one stubborn son of a bitch, but this was the race that did me in--I mean, I do break every race and I always question my intentions at some point, but this was the race where that feeling lasted well past the awards and race cleanup.

you see, while stumbling through BDL, I happened upon a review of a documentary of Joe Grant's amazing 2016 self-supported bag-every-14er effort, which piqued my interest enough to stream it.  but as the race progressed and I kept thinking back to this film--I realized that holy fuck, I've got this all wrong.   I only needed to do these timed events because life was too mundane back home waiting for Hardrock to roll around again, but chasing these feats of athletic stupidity/epic adventures was merely an escape and not a sustainable way to eliminate all the post-adventure malaise you've read about since 2015.  after talking to lori about it after the race she hypothesized I've been pretty much overtrained since then (which was likely contributing to my inability to find meaning in day-to-day life; also quelle-fucking-surprise) and that I don't even know what normal is for me anymore, and that a full blood workup beyond what insurance covers could show where my health deficiencies are.  Before I digress--I only bring this up because this was what I was thinking the whole time during the race, along with the Buddhist concept of the Middle Way in which Grant's documentary's title is derived from--which posits that there is a balance between the extreme and the mundane, but the only way to find it is to tug at both ends of the spectrum.  

But this experience will not be in vain.  I’ve been chopping wood for a good six years and sooner or later I’d have to stop to sharpen the axe—and with the year-long hiatus waiting for Hardrock, this was certainly a good time for it.  On paper I’m sure running all these timed events wasn’t quite necessary but I am one of those stubborn asshats that need pain to reinforce a concept—and per the Middle Way, you can only find balance by finding the extremes first.

by the numbers:

• placement: 3/38
• distance: 147.3mi
• D+: 3042'

shit I have to do for my next race because I paid money for that shit:

• make it count, for i am going to stop running after fat ox on thanksgiving (US) and make an effort to enrich my day to day life at home
• get my gait looked at and start gym monkeying around for strength training
• full blood workup for shit the government doesn't look for on an annual physical
• now that I've thrown out most of my stale dated shoes, work my Mafate's down and use my hiking Hokas on the second day when i'm down to hiking pace
• stock up on sleep prior to the race
• look at the weather forecast

Chapter 3: "oh that dog just ain't gonna hunt"

never been to 'bama before.....well, not the vast expanse between Huntsville and Mobile.  alas Birmingham it was!  I first encountered the Endless Mile after reading somewhere that the 2016 iteration had two 70+ year olds fighting for 1st and 2nd place and figured making old people feel bad with my whippersnapping ways would be up my wheelhouse, but it would be three years before I could attempt this.  

my goals were as follows--

1. do better than Beebe Farm (make it over 147.3mi).  
2. get my money's worth from my massage therapy appointment on the following tuesday
   

• -48
• blood work sent off, which involved fasting for 12h.  not really optimal for someone who needs to carb load crazy this week but it's a ten inning game or something like that.
• gait assessment booked but it was agreed that I should proceed with this race prior to tuning things.  
• -12
• sleep quality was still shit, even with all the napping involved with flying direct between YYC/ATL during the late morning and then onwards to BHM.  
• forgot my calf panties at home, so rocktape it was.
• -1
• drinking a couple of beers didn't help with sleeping.  I guess I'll have to channel my inner morgan sjogren.  
• the course was at Veterans Park out in Alabaster and felt like a ski loop - all pavement, a stupid 10' hill on the back corner, wide curves and the same lights they used at the Canmore Nordic Center.  (of course, it never snows down here.)  one set of toilets near the start/finish--fingers crossed no one (including the general public) clogs it, let alone needs it when I do.  
• I set up my chair next to the food tent and then, knowing there would be no cots available for me to pass out on, I folded the front passenger seat down on my corolla and slid it back.  it wasn't optimal but if I put my feet on the dash (it's a rental, calm down) I figured the angle would be still obtuse enough that my feet would be above my heart
• 0
• we shared the park with an awesome dog park with an agility course on the east end that proved to be a rowdy cheering section.  but it also brought a smile to my face every time I passed by.
• we also shared the park with local special ed kids on a play day and while we largely stayed out of each others' way all I wanted to do was go play on the bouncy castle.  seriously, I was really fucking tired.  but I didn't let this get in my head, as I knew I need all the gas for the second day and just went with it.....  
• 1
• ....to which I promptly found out that I had been being paced by a relay runner.  fuck.
• I set my watch to the heart rate page and tried to maintain 120bpm.  I finally noticed that my dizzy spells when I was powerhiking for the past four years was caused by a drop in heart rate--which probably means I gotta start running hills more/generally calming the fuck down if I don't want lose my shit on the ascents.
• 3
• finally broke out the massage roller.  i'd schedule this for every 3h, a Morton stretch the next hour and random yoga poses the hour after that.  
• 6
• so I guess we're not changing directions.  clockwise for another 42h, my right leg is going to get the workout of a lifetime.  
• finished 33.3mi so I was on pace for an 18h 100mi.  back the fuck off, leo.  
• 10
• realized I was pretty much the only person with a northerner accent here.  lololol
• popped my first caffeine pill somewhere around here.  fingers crossed it would last for 8h and I could crash somewhere around the 3am graveyard shift.  
• 12
• 66mi.  motherfucker.  
• I knew of one other 48h runner in the fray somewhere near me, Dillon from Chattanooga, but he had expressed intent to go sub-24 on his first 100 and no plans thereafter.  alas I thought nothing of his constant passing of me.  
• 14
• finally ducked into the corolla for an hour.  I got this EMS pad from addaday while I was in Vermont and slapped them on various muscles for 20mins at a time while I lied down. 
• 18
• and i'm back in the corolla already, this time just for 40mins.  or as I think of it, two laps. 
• 23
• managed to complete a lap four minutes before the next shift entered the fray.  given I was pushing 3.5mph this was lucky.
• Dillon crossed the 100mi mark somewhere around here. I was probably 14mi back at this point.  
• 25
• snuck in 100mi just under 26h, an hour ahead of beebe.  promptly rewarded myself by crawling to my corolla for half an hour.  
• 26
• realized that if I continued to attempt to run i'd swell my feet up even more.  I elected to remain at 3mph for the rest of the race.  
• 36
• got a shot of adrenaline by doing some stretching....literally on top of an ant hill.  as i'm writing this on Halloween, some of the bites are still visible.  
• 42
• finally flipped to my hiking boots and thinner socks after the feet battering was unbearable.  this was immediately audibly announced by my super aggro treads.
• realized what a dumb idea this was afterwards when I spotted two hikers rocking crocs and sandals.  fuck i'm stupid.  
• I flipped my watch back to the pace page--if I maintained 3mph I could easily hit my goal by h45.  
• interesting enough, I noticed that I ducked below 3mph if I threw my elbows out, but if I tried to walk naturally i'd be able to muster 3.6mph+.  talk about diminishing returns.  
• 45 
• Dillon finally showed up again after an extended hiatus (seriously, I hadn't seen him in at least 12h) -- and promptly passed me after mentioning we just finished the same lap.  goddammit.  
• I did tell him during the next hour I wasn't contesting his position, I just wanted to go home and brush my teeth.  
• but honestly, if there's anyone who should have beat me it would have been Dillon.  he only gets to run one race a year because of family commitments and i'm glad he made it count.  
• I started running with a retired marine colonel [who also did his time in OGA], Chuck, who was supposed to be paced by Dillon for a little bit until he hit 75mi....but then lost Dillon.  
• 47
• Dillon and Chuck finally caught up back to me, and he now had a 3mi gap on me.  Chuck just had two more laps to 75.....so I elected to go hike with them for those two laps.  
• which still gave us 23 mins to kill, so Dillon and I went out again for one more....
• and that still gave us 3 mins to kill.  we hilariously joked to take it slow as we didn't want to be caught far out in the back of the course with our partial loop flags, since neither of us were eager to want to hike back to the finish line from all the way back there.  we decided a pathway intersection just past the east dog park would be the farthest we'd go.  
• interestingly enough, Dillon, me and the 3rd place guy, jim (one of the folks from 2016) all finished pretty much on the same part of the course at the same time.  





no i didn't wear onitsuka tigers for this race either

by the numbers:

• placement: 2/31
• distance: 154.531mi
• D+: 2313'

shit I gotta do for my next race--

• get blood results back.  confirm anemia.  take some iron.  
• whatever malc the gait guy says
• buy some goddamn crocs.  
• phone it in and let my training fall off the wagon.
• makes more sense when I tell you my creatine kinase is elevated and i'm technically overtrained.  
• out of curiosity, I would like to see what sort of baseline I can roll with by only consistently doing a 10x 8k bike ride and 5x 10k run each week.  
• and then if I realize i'm undertrained--just have fun with it.  

Chapter 4: "10% luck, 20% skill, 15% concentrated power of will"

I tried to donate blood after Endless Mile and clocked in as anemic.  granted it would have been my 43rd time since starting to donate seven years ago, and symptoms are consistent with this kind of blood bag behavior, let alone someone who does silly endurance sports.  and my bloodwork came back the following day and definitely confirmed everything (ferritin was only borderline low).  


had my gait looked at to the following effect--

• High frame rate video analysis (960fps):
• 1. Sagittal plane
• Overall form/posture is very okay. Some excess forward lean from the waist. Some excess triple flexion in midstance. No clear overstride. Clear heel strike. Some small amount of excess vertical displacement.
• 2. Posterior frontal plane
• Good overall okay. Clear contralateral pelvic drop (worse on left side). Clear leftward drift on the treadmill. Significant foot flare on both sides. Mediolateral sway on both sides. More thoracic rotation toward the left.
• Key Summary:
• 1. Range of motion
• Range of motion testing highlighted some limited range around the ankles in foot plantarflexion. The hip flexors and quadriceps were also found to be a little tight. The largest restriction came from excess tension in the hamstrings group. Minor asymmetries were recorded and dominantly showed better flexibility on the right side of the body.
• 2. Force output 
• Force output testing recorded a mix of results including some moderate to high values for the lower leg muscles and the leg adductors and quadriceps. Low values were recorded for the gluteal muscles and the hamstrings. Asymmetries were found across the glutes and hamstrings with a tendency for  the right side being stronger. Meanwhile the hip flexors recorded an asymmetry contralateral to this with higher values on the left side.
• 3. Functional movement
• Functional movement testing confirmed a minor limitation to ankle range of motion and tight hamstrings limiting the sit and reach test. Otherwise the other tests indicated very good coordination of movement and a strong back. However the control of the pelvis and hip area strength generally appeared to be low. The right side was recorded as the stronger side and confirmed by right lateral hip shifting in exercises like the deep squat.
• 4. Indoor and outdoor running
• During run testing the overall values of key metrics such as step rate were okay to a little low. Ground contact times were good and well balanced from left to right. Pronation values were well within expected range and slightly asymmetric with the right side having lower pronation excursion that the left side. Footstrike was very clearly heel biased both indoors at different speeds and outdoors. Impact numbers, braking numbers, leg spring stiffnesses and swing excursions all showed that the right side is working a little better than the left through the hip area. Video analysis identified some excess forward lean from the waist, excess triple flexion in midstance and excess vertical displacement through the gait cycle. This was accompanied by some noticeable mediolateral sway of the body during the gait cycle.

i had picked fat ox 48 because i hadn't returned to phoenix since running R2R2R in 2017, and because the course is narrow and tight so only 100 runners were allowed to enter, which was perfect for my intra-race agoraphobia.  

training was pretty relaxed, with more shorter weekend runs but the same weekday bike/run volumes and replacement of some run miles with XC ski miles instead.  nevertheless the tuesday night prior to the race i happened across Nickademus de la Rosa's account of his life in the past two years on iRunFar while procrastinating on stockpiling sleep.  I ran into Nick back at Fat Dog in 2015 (which he CR'd) but he sort of disappeared after a cardiac condition diagnosis.  It's definitely one of IRF's most powerful pieces so i won't talk too much about it since i want y'all to read it, but the one line that kept me awake all night was-- 

“Running can be a part of healing, but for many if not most cases, it can’t take the place of actual therapy,” says Nick, because running—as in his case, he believes—can be “abused in an unhealthy manner” and can be symptomatic of underlying issues that cause psychological pain.

and suddenly it all made sense.  my 2015 race season and how i ran myself into the ground.  my anxiety. my historical refusal to DNF, even when nothing is working and i would be inevitably slow-cooked by the sun for not moving fast enough.  my refusal to just maybe take the season off after Hardrock got canceled so i could take a hit of validation sometime before next year.  

running was a hollow form of self harm to me.  i certainly had made good friends while doing it but the whole notion of doing seriously dumb shit in far off places requiring seriously dumb training had robbed me of the tight knit community cultivated by simply doing the mundane, simple and unflattering.

because life is hilarious, i also found myself also waking up at 2am and 3am from NWS flash flood warnings the morning of the race (there were tornadoes in another part of town too).  but always look on the bright side of life or something.  


goals were as follows--
A. PR with 155mi
B. get a fucking rad Aravaipa Artworx trophy (i.e. 3rd or better)
C. get a fucking rad Aravaipa Artworx belt buckle (i.e. 100mi+)

• -1
• sure enough, I hydroplaned a few times crossing puddles in my camaro on the way to the venue.  oh right, they gave me a fucking camaro convertible even though i asked for an intermediate vehicle with a second row so i could put my feet up while i napped like at the Endless Mile.  #firstworldproblems
• i parked the camaro a couple of yards from the race track but set up my chair and go-bag under a tent by a heater.  it wasn't ideal but i didn't want to risk having my shit out with a substantial chance of rain.  
• having run out of fucks to give already, i asked if i could be of any assistance with race setup and ended up setting up the timing mats, draining canopy roofs and staking canopy legs in puddles before putting on my dancing shoes with seven minutes to start.  
• 0
• the track was 500m around someone's house (seriously) on crushed gravel which was muddy from the previous night's rain.  groundskeepers arrived during the first hour to spread pine shavings over some trouble spots but i made the most of the soft ground running stupid fast, again.  
• the short distance posed an extra challenge in that i have a recurring tendency to stop at the food table every time i pass it, which meant that since the laps were shorter, i'd be trying to stop more.  
• much like the endless mile, i started my watch on the heart rate page and tried to get it down to 120bpm within 20 minutes.  (usually what happens on my lunch runs if i'm not doing speed work.)
• the rain stopped 10mins after the gun went off but it would be another couple of hours before i started stripping down.  
• despite the above, i managed 10k in the first hour.  just a wee bit fast.  
• 3
• first direction change.  this one wasn't quite favorable since there was a long straightaway proceeding due south into a headwind, but we'd be flipping every 3 hours so it would be a good way to chill the fuck out
• 4-7



we were having such a nice time

• i don't know what happened.  audibly i was still breathing the same but my watch was now telling me otherwise.  there seemed to be some level of accuracy as every time i'd stop it reverted down to 80-90bpm but once i got going it jumped back up to ~200bpm.  nevertheless i chalked it up to delinquent underboob sweat and/or the wind and decided to ride this out for a couple of hours.  
• 10
• it was somewhere around here when i first noticed the TV in the timing tent showing live results as soon as we crossed the mat.  i knew there were two folks i wanted to stay away from - john, the aravaipa warehouse manager (i'm not making this shit up) and jordan, some liquid death fueled runner who ran a really really consistent pace by running 25mi at a time....but faster each time.  the two of them had been passing me for a few hours now but much to my horror, i was in 1st place.  

john and i

• 14
• holy fuck it got cold fast.  i knew it was about 3°C cooler than seasonal but even for a canadian like me i had to throw on my toque, my anorak and then a hoody on top, and two layers of running gloves.  
• 15
• the broken sleep of the morning finally caught up to me and i decided to hit the sack as soon as the direction changed.  only caught 40mins sitting in the back seat of my camaro with my feet threaded through the center console.  i noticed a disgusting amount of sand and pine flakes got poured out of my shoes when i did that, which was starting to get concerning as i didn't have any gaiters.
• 16
• i was still clocking 4mph, which was a bit of a deviation from previous races in that i was usually relegated to 3mph by now.  i guess my strength training was kind of paying off.
• 18
• back in the camaro already for another 40mins.  fuck.  
• but at least i was now in 3rd place?  
• 27
• finally hit 100mi, which was sorta on pace with Beebe.
• 32
• flipped to my hiking boots, hoping the sand and pine shavings would stay out of my high cut shoes and that the issue could pertain to a hole in my mafate's.  this was much earlier than when i whipped them out for Endless Mile.
• also noticed my left knee bursa was now inflaming, which had never happened before during a race.  goddammit.  

 

this is my trademark arm swing i do that makes me look fast, when in reality anyone walking 3mph could have easily passed me. 

• 39
• finally figured out that maybe i should put my feet up on the leaned-forward passenger seat of the camaro instead of through the center console for maximum drainage.  goddammit.  managed an hour doing that.
• 40
• decided the boots weren't going to cut it so i went back to the mafate's but asked the aid station vollies for two grocery bags to wrap my feet in a la winter cycling commuting style.  with 8h to go, i'll take the sweat-induced trench foot over getting my already-pulverized feet sanded down to bone.  
• 42
• rich, a runner who had already done his share of oversleeping during the race, kindly offered me his tent and zero gravity recliner for a couple hours after he spent a couple himself passed out.  i took him up on his offer since the camaro's backseat wasn't doing much to fluid drainage.  needless to say i lost another 90mins in his comfy chair.  
• 43
• it would become apparent once i woke up that there was no way i could hit 155mi at 3mph.  150mi might be doable if i kept my bathroom breaks to a minimum.  
• also i was still in 3rd place but only about 9 laps out from 4th.  
• 46
• finished the last two s-caps in the community bottle.  i reckon i must have taken at least half that bottle over the last two days.  
• 47
• so the plan here would be to keep shuffling along the first half hour, empty my shoes and take off the now leaky bags, put on my shades and then fucking send it for another half hour.  
• yup, my socks were soaked in sweat.  this was going to hurt.  
• after witnessing the end of all the other timed races i knew there wasn't any partial laps so i would have to time this right.  
• first lap was 5:32.  by this logic i could probably fit five-ish more laps if i ran at least one faster.  
• oh you know what would help make me run faster?  high-fiving vollies and singing along to the late surge music.  
• i shit you not, this was one of the songs during this burst.
• five laps later and my last split was now in the three's.  FUCK.  i kicked it up another gear and started hitting two's after a few more laps, with my last lap pushing me to 150.5mi done in 2:01.  i had slightly more than that left on the clock but also less than three minutes left....nevertheless i elected to stop as jubilee had already got the spirit tunnel going and had already announced my name.  i was only 4mi back of jordan (who hilariously overslept after 40ish h but still came back to the race to cheer us on like a class act), and 4mi ahead of 4th/1st lady.  

in all seriousness, if my trophy was any bigger i would have trouble fitting it in my carry-on without breaking it.

i'm ok with how this little experiment ended, because everything you believe will fail you sooner or later, but that's how one grows.  immortality just begets nihilism, transience and insignificance, and the feeling of finally feeling vulnerable makes you zero in on the experiences that truly have meaning.   And for me, that means focusing on getting to Hardrock in tip-top shape, which means more strength training, more lower-impact cross-training (yay fat biking and XC skiing), more patience with the process and accepting that there’s more to life and one's identity than the miles on your shoes and the stupid ultrasignup ranking.  

but more importantly—I’ve learned that you really do not have to run far to find your center.  

by the numbers:

• placement: 3/16
• distance: 150.524mi
• D+: 150m according to strava

shoutouts

• all the vollies i encountered.  seriously.  it's one thing to work an aid station at an ultra, it's another to work an aid station at an ultra where the same drunk toddlers come through multiple times requesting increasingly complex nutritional remedies and asking for someone maternal.  y'all are amazing.
• all my new friends.  for the company while searching for the sweet release of death together, but for also inadvertently making me realize how much i take my proximity to the rockies for granted.
• lori, for making me realize the gratuitous excess of my training volumes but trusting that i'd figure it out eventually.  

advice for folks attempting to attempt this kind of training block

• why?  just don't, there's more to life than this.  

advice for folks attempting their first timed event

• break your day(s) into blocks.  it needs to be a divisor of 24 so I like 8h increments because 6h creates too much fussing about.
• it's ok to stop.  maybe not for 24h, but it's ok to take care of yourself.  
• patience.  you have no idea how many people would kill to be able to maintain 3mph after 40h. 
• ratio your walk breaks by lap.  obviously make it higher if your laps are smaller in distance.  
• your dreams while passed out mid-race get really fucked up.  roll with it. 
• read up on the surface before you run
• do you need gaiters?
• if it's flat and you anticipate to be walking a bit, can you make use of crocs?
• don't panic.  this is a ten inning game and your competitors can oversleep, especially if they didn't drive a fucking camaro convertible to the race and didn't have a cot to use.  

stray observations

• waiting is just experiencing the progression of time without any perceived reward.  in a convenience oriented society we tend to rely on external stimuli but timed events will almost certainly kill this appetite for instant gratification and make you search out more inherent shit like taking pleasure in your own thoughts.  so while I've emerged completely fucking burnt out from this experience, i'm grateful I did because it did a number on my patience too. 
• the fastest lap ever run by a 48h runner at fat ox was me during my last lap (2:01).  makes me wonder if i can start sprinting more than 30mins out from the end of the golden hour.  
• i usually tell people 'good job' when i pass them during an ultra or vice versa--but it's almost redundant in a timed even when you'll repeat yourself within 10-15 minutes.  i can definitely say my failure to keep up my propensity to encourage others has made me cockier over the last few months. 
• i'll go into my plans for next year a little more in my next blog post, but nickademus' mandate of helping people run faster is definitely in my list.  not sure what it'll eventually look like but it'll definitely involve more volunteering and race management.  

“Somewhere in the universe exists a past version of yourself who is watching you with tears running down their face, staring in a state of complete awe that you have come as far as you have. The worry, the fear and the pain that existed between the two of you is gone now. It has been transformed into hope, into faith, into complete belief that you are capable of building a life so good, you wouldn’t even know to wish for it.” 

-Brianna Wiest