I'm retired from racing. Really.

There is a 50k in Ashland next month put on by Hal Koerner. Lots of speedy guys show up (Max King, Eric Skaggs, etc). Any tips for someone (me) considering a race in the mountains that's 5 miles longer than I've ever raced before?

Yeah- have fun and start easy.

It depends on your goals. If you want to maximize your chance of a good time and enjoyable race, start easier than you think. You should hit mile 10 thinking you are going too slow. By mile 20 you'll feel like you're going fast enough. And by 30 you'll wish you had started slower. In all seriousness, just don't go too fast the first 10 miles, or you'll lose 30 min at the end.

Also, nutrition- aim for 200-300 calories an hour, 20 oz water/hr, and might want to look into a couple S-caps.

Other than that, good luck and have fun!

If I wasn't clear, I suggest carrying water. 1 bottle is more than enough.

Or, just go out with Max and company and see what happens! You never know. But you'll likely end up death marching the last hour if you do.

Great advice. Thanks. I guess I wasn't clear; regardless of who shows up ie Max, I wouldn't 'race.' I'm more interested in the experience and accomplishment than the time/place. For my first ultra anyway... ;-)

I know you personally shoot for certain finishing times in your races because, well, your good and set course records and all that. But for me and my first one, should I even wear a watch and bother to know pace? If so, what would you recommend. On roads, my everyday pace for all my runs, regardless of distance, is 7:00/mile. How do you think that translates to the hills?

I'm all for starting easy so its not a horribly miserable experience the last 5-10 miles.

I was fortunate that I won my first few ultras, mainly cause the opening pace was easy by the lead group.

It's your call on the watch- I like knowing how far I've gone so I can gauge how much longer I have. But you're an experienced runner- pace wise, my advice is just run at the pace you think you can sustain for 4 hours or so. Go by effort- 7 min pace effort or so (no mattter what trail pace is). It really should feel fairly easy the first third of the race. If you hit the last third, you can always pick the pace up a lot if you feel great.

In other words, go by perceived effort, not actual pace. And make sure to eat/drink regularly right from mile 1.

Thanks again. That makes a lot of sense.

Next question; you mention 200-300 calories an hour. Normally I take just 2 Gu's per marathon. Obviously, I'll need more as I'll be running for 4 hours or so, but with each Gu being only 100 calories, what else would you suggest eating? Probably a lame question, but humor me. Haha.

Lastly, would you have a a 2nd pair of shoes to switch into at some point? Or is that something to not worry about with a 50k; only for the longer ones?

Thanks again for the tips.

In a 50k (or even a 100 miler), I do almost exclusively gu's, clif bloks, etc. They will have a wide variety of foods at the aid stations, though, so feel free to peruse and choose. I always like fruit and soda, too. If you want to eat real food, I suggest putting a sandwich baggie in your shorts pocket, which you can load in an aid station and then eat as you run.

I wouldn't worry about shoes for a 50k. Even a 50 miler, I usually don't change shoes. You should be fine.