The Long Run

62.14 miles, 13:54:00, 13:25 avg

So, who does this? Does raceday registration for a 100K race?  Now I know.  Actually, I thought about running this race two weeks earlier, the day after my birthday when I ran a couple loops of the Croom Zoom course, also known as the "B" loop as the hiking trail is marked. That day I was toying with running my age in miles and looked for but did not find Andy "Croom" Matthews the race director who was so excited that the 100 mile race was finally happening that he ran 100 miles, some of it with friends and a lot of it solo.  I haven't done much ultra-specific training but knew that if I lowered my pace I could get through it ok.  The night before the race I told a couple of people I was going to do the 50K.  My kids said I should do the 100K (partially because they wanted me out of the house longer but I'd like to think also that they believed in me).

Race started at 6:00 and the weather was looking good.  First portion is a 2.2 mile "starter loop", starting out on pavement, turning onto a dirt fire road and then onto single track trail taking us back to the start line.  Just sort of followed along with everyone trying my best not to trip or go out too hard.  Back at the start at 6:30.

Loop 1

Started the first big loop, still dark.  My first and only 100k was on a flat course with no hills and my time was just over 11 hours.  Today I thought 12 hours sounded doable, so my plan was to try and do about 2 hour loops, maybe a little faster here and there to make up for the starter loop time.  Still dark at the start of this loop I kept my light and grabbed my fuel belt for hydration.  Felt good and finished the loop at 8:23 am, so about 1:53, right about where I wanted to be.

Loop 2

Light out for the next loop. Finished at 10:15 am, so 1:52 and still where I wanted to be but maybe I should be holding back a little bit?  Ihad my phone in my drop bag at the starting area and did a quick post on Facebook for anyone who might be following my progress.  The distance seemed not impossible but I was having more and more respect for what I had to still run.  I hadn't run over 33 miles since August 2014 when I did the Pinellas Trail Challenge and April 2014 when I did the Croom Fools Run 50 mile race.

Loop 3

Started the third loop and was feeling pretty confident, keeping the pace steady and feeling a little more relaxed since I now had some good miles completed.  Still a lot to go.  There were two unmanned aid stations and one manned aid station halfway through the loop (about 5 miles) as well as aid at the starting area.  The volunteers at the halfway point aid station were amazing.  Seeing them each time almost made me feel like I was further along than I was.  On the third loop I think I said something like "only have to come here 3 more times!"  Felt kind of like I was already halfway done even though only 27 miles in.  But then, with a few more miles to finish the third loop I had my first feeling of tired legs and thoughts that maybe this wasn't wise to jump into 100k distance on whatever training I had been doing.

But still, despite being a little tired feeling, still on track, finishing third big loop at 12:14, or 6:15 for about 50k - 45 minutes slower than running the same 50k last year.

Loop 4

As I headed out onto the 4th loop I saw Patrick Bene.  He was doing the 100 mile race and had been running at a pretty big lead ahead of me.  I opened up my first "5 Hour Energy", drank about half of it and soon had a renewed spring in my step.  I chatted with Patrick for a bit until finally pulling ahead of him, he told me to be careful (would later realize that would have been a good time to not run ahead of him).  Great to see the halfway aid station volunteers, but then sometime in the second half of the fourth loop slowed down a bit.  Finished the 4th loop in 2:06, total time of 8:20.

Loop 5 

At the start of each loop, there's a root covered section of downhill, maybe about a 1/4 mile. I would take it pretty slowly and mostly walk it.  I'd also usually be eating or drinking something still.  Each loop I'd go a little farther into the start before I started running again, especially on the 5th loop.  I was beginning to really notice every little feature of the trail more and more each loop.   Kind of comforting but also knowing all of the details made the distance seem longer in some ways.  My feet also started really hurting and kind of started feeling bad all over.

But, as I finished up the 5th loop I was greeted by not one but two friends waiting for me.  Both my running partner Jamie and my significant other girlfriend Jessica were both there.  Both of them had mentioned they would try to come up but there was nothing definite.  Also, with my facebook posts I wasn't able to actually check the comments as they were taking a long time to load.  Just prior to seeing them I was dreading having to go back out there.  But, things were different now.

Loop 6

Chatted with Jamie and Jessica as I gathered up my stuff for the final loop.  They both had on running clothes and were ready to go.  I wasn't sure what the plan was so I said, let's start walking and plan what to do.  Before I knew I'd have company I was envisioning a 3 hour loop, which would just be an 18 minute pace - going to basically walk it but wasn't looking forward to a long lonely walk.  As we got along farther into the loop I realized I was going to have company for the full ten miles.  But, it was getting dark out slowly.  So, it was actually kind of fun, felt more like a hike at this point and I wasn't suffering like I was on the 5th loop.  Jamie had a light and I had my headlamp and a small flashlight.  Made it to the half way aid station for the 6th and final time.  Crossed the road and started the second half of loop 6.

I soon realized my headlamp batteries were completely dying.  I should have put fresh batteries in but did not and should have had spare batteries.  However, my original plan would have me in the dark for maybe only 15-20 minutes.  Runners were periodically passing us up.  Eventually Patrick and one of his pacer friends George came up behind us.  Patrick was looking strong again and quoting Shakespeare.  I asked which play the quote was from, at first he said Hamlet and then said Othello, something about screwing down your courage and not failing.  (I later looked up the quote , it was from MacBeth - "What if we fail?  But, screw your courage to the sticking place and we shall not fail").

Eventually a guy named Tim came up behind us and was chatting along.  He was running the 100 mile race and on his 5th loop.  His headlamp was very bright which helped quite a bit.  He also had a spare headlamp which he gave to Jessica.  Unfortunately, shortly after she put on the light, she tripped on a root.  I went to help her up and there's that moment right after someone falls and you're not sure if they are ok or anything is broken.  She got up and was ok (except for a really big bruise on her arm).  As we got closer and closer, a couple more people passed us up but we finally made it.  10th place out of 22. 
Three hours and four minutes for the final loop and race was finally over.

It was a memorable and rewarding experience, lots of ups and downs.  Grateful for Jessica and Jamie showing up and sticking with me for the last loop, the aid station volunteers, Andy the race director, Patrick's inspiration, Tim's light and the general kindness and cameraderie of everyone out there.

5.13 mi, 53:26, 10:25 avg

Ran in the neighborhood with Jamie.  I was surprised that last night I had a strong desire to run in the morning.  Legs felt pretty considering!

Did not run this morning.  For the first time in a long time I absolutely did not run.  I gave myself a pass because of "recovery".  Maybe should have taken off yesterday.

5.3 mi, 47:08, 8:54 avg

Ran in the nbhd, solo.  Good run overall I think.

6.0 mi, 53:56, 8:59 avg

Started at Longleaf with the Striders and ran up and down Starkey Blvd bike trail.  Started out with Daisy and Joe.  Joe continued on when Daisy and I turned back.  Return trip was a little bit slower on purpose to ease back the pace.  My headlamp died almost right away because the "new" batteries I put in were actually old ones that got mixed in.

4.41 mi,  39:21, 8:56 avg

Short run in the nbhd, I need to leave the house before 8:00 to pick up Thomas for orthodontist appointment.  I did a few strides at the end to remind my legs how to run fast.

7.0 mi, 1:02:52, 8:59 avg

Ran with Cynthia in Starkey Park.  Just a quick run, had to be done by 8:30 so went out half of the time and then turned around.  Came back faster so we had to run a little bit past the start.  She had forgotten her watch so told me to set the pace.  First mile was 10:35, last mile was 8:13 and each mile between was a little faster than the one before.  Cool at the start, almost cold but not quite.  Saw several deer on the side of the trail.

AM - 5.35, 47:54 - ran in the neighborhood before waking up the kids.

PM - 1.3 mi, 12:30 - took Thomas swimming at the Y, did some weights and a little bit on the treadmill with three 10% incline hills to start with, need to start adding more so I'm not completely unprepared for Georgia Death Race which will be here sooner than I know.

7.26 mi, 1:04:32, 8:53 avg

Ran with Joe, starting at Longleaf.  Small group this morning.  Florida winter finally with 39 degrees, not too bad with long sleeves, hat and shorts, and one glove (can't find the other one).  Wore Brooks Pureflow which I retired from the list a while ago but they must still be good because they felt pretty good.

6.1 mi, 53:22, 8:45 avg

Ran in the nbhd, started just after 6:00.  Garmin battery died about 4.6 miles into the run at which point I knew I was 1.5 miles from home and I'm pretty sure I kept about the same average pace which was about 8:45 the last time I had looked before losing power.

10.3 mi, 1:30:04, 8:45 avg

Ran from my house, leaving just after 5:00, met Joe at back gate of neigborhood and ran to Longlife.  Waited a bit for Jamie until we were pretty sure she wasn't coming then got going again, running out to Aristide before turning back.  Weather was just slightly warmer than yesterday, felt almost perfect at 46 degrees, would have been great for running a marathon.  Stopped briefly to say hi to the group on the way back then continued home.

5.52 mi, 55:24, 10:02 avg

Ran with Jamie and Andy in the neighborhood.  Andy was supposed to run with the team yesterday but overslept so decided to run with me today.  Started at 6:00, met Jamie.  There was a light rain, which cleared up briefly and then maybe started again, but it was pretty decent overall, not too cold.

So, my boys got me good today.  They had been trying to do this for years to either me or their mom but could never pull it off.  After the run they both got ready and when it's time to leave I leash up Sammy and take him for a short walk while they drive off to school (it's the evolved tradition of Sammy riding in the truck to the bus stop).  Andy came out, got in the truck, sat there for a few minutes, went back inside, came back out and said Tom wasn't coming down.  What??  Went inside said he had to come down.  Then finally Andy said that if Tom is not going then he's not going.  Finally figured out there was no school today.  There were clues that I missed.  For example, yesterday on the way to swimming Tom said they didn't have school tomorrow.  But I said no, that's next Friday.  That's when he decided this was the perfect chance to get away with it.  Other clue - the elementary school in the neighborhood had on their sign "Teacher planning day 1/15".  I assumed it was just that school, however schools just don't do that, it's always the entire county.  There were a few more subtle clues I missed as well.  It was kind of funny.

14.11 mi, 2:02:06, 8:39 avg

Left the house and started running about 5:40.  Ran to Longleaf and met Joe and Renee.  Joe had also run there from his house but I didn't realize it until I got there.  Continued on another 5ish miles (about out to 7.1 miles) and then turned back to head home by myself while Joe and Renee were going out another two miles. 

I needed to get back home for the tv delivery people.  This was try #2 after Wednesday when the TV they delivered had three big cracks.  This time they unboxed it before they left (which I should have done last time) and saw it was ok.  The old tube TV of 14 years finally died (picture was smooshed in half - it had been that way for a month or so).

Later AM: 2.07 mi, 18:58, 9:11 avg

After the TV people left and I hooked it all up saw that I had 49.94 miles for the week and thought that 50 something would look better so I ran once around the nbhd loop plus a little more to get 2 miles done.

12.54 mi, 1:54:02, 9:05 avg  (wore older Brooks pureflow)

Ran with Jamie and Cynthia in Starkey Park.  Cynthia missed her run and Jamie is trying to get caught up.  Warmish at the start but on the way back the wind picked up and then the skies darkened but the bulk of the storm had already passed through south of here.  I had half an idea to run the Clearwater Marathon or 50K this morning but due to weather and potentially worsening weather (e.g. tornado possibilities) the longer races were canceled and all runners were made to turn around at the half marathon turnaround.

Park was pretty quiet, saw a few other runners, a number of cyclists, including Jason who slowed down and rode along with us for a little bit to say hi, and one 6-point buck.

8.08 mi, 1:07:48, 8:23 avg

It was cold out this morning, not that cold actually but a little bit of headwind and starting out alone in the dark made it feel colder.  I was a couple minutes late for 5:30 start at Longleaf and there ended up not being many people there.  First mile felt slow but it at least it didn't feel difficult.  I hung in there and knew I'd warm up and knew I'd feel better soon.  Saw a couple of Strider friends at the water stop, continued on to the end of Diane's street before heading back.  With a couple of miles left to go I could hear a couple of runners coming up quickly behind me.  It was Mike and Jolene moving along at a good pace.  Said hi to them and then picked it up a little and then a lot following them.  Thought I'd do one faster mile at least but ended up doing two.

From start to finish the pace range was pretty wide: 10:27, 9:02, 8:32, 8:17, 8:12, 8:05, 7:23, 7:06

5.46 mi, 45:39, 8:22 avg

I was starting to think there would be no freezes this winter.  Chilly 30's this morning.  I didn't see any frost but I think there was some in the area.   Up late last night for work and not in a hurry to get out of bed but finally did get going.  Overdressed with long sleeve shirt and short sleeve underneath and also a hat.  Long sleeve was the MCM shirt which has a turtle neck.  Took long sleeve shirt off half way into the run and felt chilly but not cold - perfect.  Run got faster as I went on.  Ran in the nbhd and near the golf course.

10.05 mi, 1:22:09, 8:11 avg

Nice running weather.  Did a big loop from my house to 54, then onto the hospital access road, to Little Rd, down to the Y for a water and gel stop, then home via Kinsmere, Trinity Blvd and golf course.  The run was basically a steady pick up with first mile at 9:37 and last two 7:12 and 7:10

4.08 mi, 35:50, 8:47

Ran in the neighborhood.  Slow in getting out of bed and sneaking in between rain.  Pretty good run by the end, just a little bit short.

21.21 mi, 2:58:39, 8:25 avg

Ran in Starkey Park with Cynthia for a little over 8 miles.  It was chilly, windy, and a little rainy here and there.  Stopped by for Striders picture, ate one donut hole and had a half cup of coffee  but I knew I needed more than 8 miles.  Maybe 14 miles? or 15 - go out three or so and then come back.  Average pace for first part of the run was 8:44.

Got going again before I got too cold and felt pretty good.  The Pasco Challenge 5k/10k/half races were going on so I saw runners coming and going both ways.  I kept on going a little bit further until I was close to the end of the Starkey bike trail and finally turned around.  I stopped and tried to help a cyclist with her flat tire but didn't have much luck and she said her friend would be by in a few minutes.

I kept the pace steady with a slight progression so finished up last two miles in the 7:40's and thankful to myself that I actually went back out for the second half of the run.  Didn't try to overdo it with the pace because planning on running tomorrow for at least 10 miles.

10.23 mi, 1:34:22, 9:14 avg

As hoped and promised ran today after yesterday's long run.  Colder than expected but I'm sure "balmy" compared to half of the country with this morning's temperature at 37 degrees.  Still shorts weather though.

Ran with Jamie, meeting at 9:00 and heading out towards the golf course.  Went to Little Road and decided to head down the street and do the Kinsmere loop.  After getting there saw Carin out for a run.  Hadn't seen here out running in literally years, said hi for a bit then continued on. 

The miles went by pretty quickly.  I was afraid at the start of the run that I'd feel achey and clanky but it felt pretty easy and relaxed.

7.08 mi, 1:04:14, 9:04 avg

Ran at Longleaf.  I was a couple minutes late but fortunately Joe hadn't left yet so was able to run with him.  Was warmer this morning, low 50's, was a little cold at first with short sleeves and then it was perfect after a mile or so.  Forgot to stop my watch at the one stop so the average is the total time average.

6.26 mi, 52:34, 8:24 avg

Avoided the rain as long as I could.   It died down finally.  Got out about 6:45, ran a loop around the neigbhorhood (1.7 miles) , woke up the boys and then did another out and back.  Originally was going to get running at 5:45 and try and get in an extra mile or so, but at least it wasn't a total wash.

7.14 mi, 57:45, 8:05 avg

I was up way too late the night before, had to go back into work to try and get some things working that were due at the end of the week and didn't get to bed until 1:00.  Thought about skipping the run and then decided I'd just do an out and back to the water stop at whatever pace.   Joe was there so I ran with him and I actually felt pretty good.  Decided to run out to 3.5 miles for 7 total.  Last two miles 7:23 and 6:58.  Glad I didn't skip!

7.42 mi, 1:00:16, 8:08 avg

Got started reasonably on time.  Second mile looked like it was really fast (6:18) but it was definitely a glitch.  Pretty good run in the neighborhood overall.

30.04 mi, 4:45:58, 9:31 avg

I needed to run far today.  Started from my house just after 6:00 and ran to Longleaf where I met Jamie for 6:30ish start.  Brief stop at Diane's lemonade stand and continued into Starkey Park, stopped at the shelter and then continued on.  Jamie headed back after a half mile so she could get back with 13 miles total.  I noticed a couple of times that my pace was very steady until I realized I had stopped it at the shelter and forgot to start it again.  Missed about maby 0.7 miles (Starting where the shelter trail intercepts the main bike trail is a Sun sign and then planets spaced proportionally until Pluto (which was still a planet when the signs went up) which is 1 mile from the Sun.  Started my watch again at Uranus.

At about two miles out from the shelter are the big power lines with a dirt access road running underneath.  Turned onto the access road and ran north until I thought I had enough to make it to 30 miles round trip (not counting the 0.7 that I missed on the way out but knowing it would count on the way back and planning on bypassing the side trip to Diane's house).  It was a great place of solitude.  Also, the road was rutted and pot-holed with lots of water to avoid.  It was a pain dodging around the obstacles but soon I forgot I was doing it and was just doing it instead.  Saw a really big buck crossing the trail.  Stopped and picked up a big white feather and was going to bring it back with me but it kept on falling out of my belt.   I wanted to stick it in my hat but there was no place to make it stick.

My pace felt pretty good, sometimes slowing a little as the road was harder to pass and speeding up a little when it was smooth.  Near the turn around my legs were getting tired which was kind of worrisome when only half-way done.  But, this was why I was here and doing this distance - to run on tired legs.

Made it back to the bike trail, topped off my water at the last water stop and was soon leaving the park.  Starkey Blvd was mostly uneventful.  I thought of stopping a few places but didn't.  I'd think about stopping at a bench up ahead or a fence where I could stretch, but when I'd get to that spot I'd just keep going.

Made it back to SR 54, only two miles left to go.  Slowed a little on second to last mile and then got some spring in my step for the last mile and ran about an 8:45 pace.  Done.

7.2 mi, 1:11:15, 9:54 avg

Ran with Jamie in the neighborhood, 8:00 start time.  Legs were slow and heavy at first but soon loosened up and the slow and heavy turned into easy pace.  Nice weather and good way to start the day.