2017 Training Log
- January - 53 miles
- February - 44 miles (injury strikes)
- March - 21 miles (start seeing PT)
- April - 110 miles (progression)
- May - 76 miles (injury flares again)
The above mileage with a long run of just 19 miles was about as poor of a base as I could have imagined leading into a 100
, but I decided to give it a run on Saturday at the Kettle Moraine 100.
Pre-Race I signed up for this race for two reasons; (1) Get a Western States qualifier and (2) get that done early in the season so I could focus more summer time with the family and not worry as much about training. The forecast was looking like warm weather/humid (mid/upper 80's for temp and SI in the 150's) and the potential for storms. As heat is my kryptonite, I was a bit nervous but had no expectations considering my physical state. With the weather in mind, I decided I'd try to put in work during the morning to beat the heat and see if I could hold on for the rest of the race. I knew the challenge in this race was the course layout, but not necessarily the terrain. With just 8,500 feet of elevation gain/loss, it's pretty benign for a 100. But the course consists of two out and back sections. The first heading out north for a 50K out and back, ending up back at the start/finish line at Mile 63, followed by a 19 mile out/back heading in the other direction. The challenge with that is getting back out of the start/finish area quickly, because this race allows you to drop at mile 63 if you choose and become a 100K finisher. But I now had an ace in the hole. On Tuesday of last week my friend whom paced me for 35 miles at the Superior 100 last year called and asked if I was running. After telling him that I planned to, he said that he wanted to drive out and pace me the last 38 miles if I was open to that. After I laid out my concerns about lack of training and uncertainty as to how this race would unfold, he wanted to make the 10 hour round trip drive. Damn nice friend.
To the Turnaround (Miles 0-31) So off we went, 250 runners, at 6am on Saturday into reasonable temps and overcast skies. The legs felt ok, my mind was right, and I was ready for whatever lay ahead. The first 2.5 hours went reasonably well. There were more rolling hills than I had imagined at the start of the race which I was certainly not looking forward to heading back through from miles ~50-62. Around 2.5 hours into the race the rain was unleashed. It was a torrential downpour with thunder and lightning nearby. I was prepared for this, having run through it for four hours during the middle of the night the previous year during the Superior 100. And to be honest, I prefer the rain to the heat so the weather for the time being was fine by me. I was looking forward to hitting the 31 mile turnaround as not only would it feel like Phase I was accomplished, but because I'd also have some family there including my wife/children and my brother with family. My brother was readying to run his first 50K at Kettle, which was to start at 1pm and head back in the same direction I would be. I arrived at mile 31 in 5:39, which was admittedly too fast, just as three hours of rain was starting to let up. It was energizing to see everyone, but I was starting to feel the miles, the trail was a mess, and the temperature was now starting to climb.
Back Through the Start (Miles 32-63) After about 10 minutes in the aid station chatting with my family, changing my socks, and restocking my pack, I was off. I was in pretty good shape sans a pretty solid blister already forming on the inside of my left toe. The heat seemed to instantly kick in, footing on the slick trail was now an issue, and my mental state quickly fell through the floor. As the temps did indeed rise into the mid-upper 80's, my spirits fell. While large chunks of about 15 miles of trail on the way back resembled
this, that wasn't as bothersome as the heat. And while this race takes place in the Kettle Moraine State Forest, there are solid portions including miles exposed in the open meadows, that are simply not shaded. I progressively questioned my motives for running the race. I #######
hHate running in the heat. I simply don't enjoy it, and so I started attempting to rationalize why I would even want to run a notably hot race such as Western States. And I ultimately convinced myself that I didn't. Note to self...don't rationalize anything during a 100 mile race. So there I was watch watching, dreading every minute of being out there, and starting to seriously convince myself that I didn't care about Western States and so badly wanted to drop at mile 63. The only hiccup with quitting was the fact that I now had a pacer waiting for me whom had just driven 5 hours to be there. And I knew he wanted to
run. I pushed through the suffering and arrived at mile 63 in 13:23.
This shot as I'm coming into the Aid Station about says it all. I was defeated, but I knew that I couldn't quit with Lucas waiting for me. I spent 10-15 minutes in the aid station not only tending to my feet which were starting to become a mess, but also trying to regroup. The thought of another 38 miles was daunting. My wife and kids pepped me up a bit, Lucas tended to restocking my pack and bottles, and we headed out.
Out to the Final Turnaround (Miles 62-82) I immediately told Lucas how poorly I felt. My knee/leg pain was starting to flare, my feet were becoming a bit of a mess in large part I believe to being wet the entire day, but what was getting to me most that somehow got away from me was chaffing of the nethers. I tried a few times to really slop on the Glide, but it was providing zero relief. We had a short stretch of miles on the same route out as the first out and back that led to a quick pick me up....we ran into my brother just a few miles out from his first 50K finish. I had been concerned about him with the heat and muddy mess, so I was beyond excited to see him and know that he had his first ultra in the bag. We spoke briefly and carried on. Before we had even hit mile 70, I verbally tossed out contemplation of dropping to Lucas. He was having none of it, telling me to "contemplate it for the next 30 miles."
Bless Lucas, he was pulling out all the stops...kindness, harshness, etc. But I simply couldn't throw stretches of running together that lasted longer than 1/4 mile. We hit mile 70 and Lucas convinced me to get to the next aid station, which was just 2.6 miles away. Problem is, I knew the next AS was remote and that I'd have to go another 4.1 on top of that to get to an AS at which I could quit. By that point we'd be 4.5 miles from the turnaround, and just 23 miles from the finish. But things can and did get worse. As too much information, I started physically holding my boys away from my legs as soon as we left the AS at mile 70. And I ran that way for 2.6 miles, before slapping on a healthy dose of Vasoline at the unmanned AS. We then proceeded out for another 4.1 miles to the next AS and I instantly realized that Vasoline was doing nothing for me either so I continued to hold the boys. It was only about a mile into this section when I hit the tipping point and told Lucas I was pulling the plug at the next AS. He talked through it with me over the next few miles, and I firmly believed it was the right decision. Another 23 miles at the pace we were going was going to be 6-7 hours. And the thought of dealing with my physical state over another 6-7 hours, after having been miserable for the previous 10+ hours was too much to mentally overcome. I called in my wife and she met us at mile 77 with the vehicle at 11:38pm.
Aid Station Splits
Random Thoughts
- For a benign 100, the finish rate was pretty poor. Just 102 of the 250 entrants finished. 192 made it back to Mile 63 at the start/finish area, and 67 of those (35%!!) decided to take the 100K official finish and call it a day. I so badly wanted to be one of those, but in hindsight I'm glad I wasn't because Lucas being there to pace me made me at least give this race a bit more of an honest effort and log some additional miles.
- My feet have never really gotten wrecked like that with blisters, and I'm hopeful it was due primarily to the wetness for a majority of the day. The blister on the inside of my big toe stretched the entirety of the toe, I had blisters on the tips of three other toes, between toes, and even a couple other small ones in spots I don't normally have issues in. I'm not sure what more I could have done to take care of my feet, but I'd probably try Injinji socks next time and see if that helped.
- One of the additional reasons I convinced myself that dropping was a good decision was that I could then get a bit of sleep Saturday night, and be able to enjoy what was to be a beautiful day with my wife/children and brother's family on Sunday. This came to fruition, as we spent most of the day in and around Lake Geneva, WI on Sunday. Super fun day.
Regret
The regret of dropping was mildly present on Sunday, but spending the day with my family certainly helped. That regret has since deepened. I keep thinking "just 23 more miles" and I would have finished, misery be damned. But I quit, and this feeling sucks. I hate it. On one hand, deep down I guess I'm pleased that I went 77 miles at a pace that was still ticking me towards a ~24-25 hour finish. On the other hand, I just had to suffer for 6-7 more hours and I would've completed the race, had a WS qualifier, and my mind would have been at ease. So my mind has been a bit messed up about this, but I did learn some incredibly valuable lessons. (1) Running a 100 on 250 miles of training over the prior four months with a long run of 19 miles is a poor idea (2) I let the chaffing get away from me and I believe that was far and away the most mentally defeating issue for me...I won't let that happen again (3) When things were going south I didn't use my brain to problem solve, I just let it continue to think dark thoughts...in hindsight, I wish I would have seen if an AS had any large bandages which I could have applied to my legs to eliminate 1/2 of the chaffing issue...and I hadn't popped any ibuprofen which I think could have helped my knee/leg issue late in the race and possibly even the chaffing issue a bit (4) I didn't have a strong enough "why" to keep going. I thought the why was wanting to run Western States, but I let myself rationalize that away as the heat was getting to me all afternoon and the miles were adding up. And since I didn't have any strong emotional investment in actually
wanting to run the Kettle 100, that combination was a ball and chain around my leg in my attempt to finish.
Looking Forward
Before we even hit the road for home on Monday, I was in full on regret mode about not getting that WS qualifier. My wife is incredible, and she started encouraging me with talk of "this race was just a 77 mile training run, so let's find another WS qualifying 100 this year." So she started perusing the qualifiers list and we're kicking around a couple races out
@SFBayDuck 's way. I think the leading candidate in the field is the Rio Del Lago 100 in California in November, which touches on pieces of the American River 50, Way Too Cool 50K, and even a bit of the Western States trail. Other's in contemplation would be the Pine to Palm 100 in Oregon in September, as well as the Hallucination 100 in Michigan in September.
IF we do this, it would likely just be my wife and I heading to the race so a driving factor in which race might be the general destination/area that she could enjoy a bit while I'm out running all day, and that we could enjoy for a day or two before and/or after the race. Any insight from anyone regarding these three races, or others(!!), would be greatly appreciated.
TLDR
I quit.
I could wear one shirt. Two if we count the military division. 
