I took Sunday to digest my race experience because it would help me wrap my head around the whole experience...not sure it helped but here goes...

For anyone who read my "Help Me Decide" thread, you probably already know that I had planned on running the Ironmaster's 50k the previous weekend...that was the plan.  A project at work got delayed again and again and I ended up having to work 12 hour days, 7 days a week for the majority of April (instead of March).  My running suffered (40 miles total in April) and I ended up bailing on Ironmaster's so that I could have a relaxing weekend and to catch up on chores.

I was a bit leery to sign up for "The North Face Endurance Challenge: New York - Gore-Tex 50 Mile".  This is not my kind of race.  A corporate event, close to NYC (with a bunch of NYC road runner types), a wave start, sharing the trails with 100's of people participating in the 3 events of the day (50M, 50K, marathon)...it just did not seem like a good fit to me.   On the other hand...a 50 Mile race in less than an hours worth of travel time from my house was enough to tip the scale, so I bit the bullet and signed up.  I signed up for the 50 miler instead of the 50k because Boyjame made me do it .

I stuffed myself on sushi rolls starting thursday night through friday night...same as Stone Mill.  I don't know if there is anything to "stuffing yourself with sushi" as a pre-race ritual, but it's a good excuse for me to indulge in a food that my Fiance doesn't really eat (so I'm sticking with it!).  I slept intermittantly for about 6 hours on Friday night, dragged myself out of bed, and made it to the shuttle buses by 4:00 for the 5:00 race start.  I checked my drop bag and hung out at one of the fire pits waiting for the race to start.  The race had 3 waves.  I was in wave 2.  Dean Karnazes gave a quick little pre-race speech and wave 1 was off.  I jumped into the group for wave 2 and 3 minutes later we were on our way.

The first few miles were done in the dark.  I was following the conga line along (which was moving at a good pace) when all of the sudden, people were scattering  left and right and darting all over.  The first puddle.  The first of many puddles.  I just ploughed through while everyone else tried to keep their feet dry.  The fellow behind me followed my lead, yelling "that's right! embrace it!".  We had a good time passing a bunch of people and he kept the banter going until we were spread out a bit.

Before you knew it, the sun was poking up and the flashlights were stowed.  I could finally see the scenery around me.  Bear Mountain is mainly hardwood forest with groves of rhododendron and wild blueberries mixed in.  The peak of each hill was "bald" rock, heavily grooved with random large rocks sitting in strange places...evidence of glaciers.  At the top of the first major climb were a couple groups of backpackers who were just waking up.  I chatted with a group as I went by.  "That hill sucks!" referring to the one I had just walked up..."That hill is behind me...I'm not worried about that hill" I told him, which got a chuckle out of his group.  It always amazes me how long a thought stays with you while you are out on a long run.  I must have spent 2 hours contemplating how "that hill is behind me" was an allegory for my life and how I'm always looking forward and rarely spend much time on what has already happened.  In retrospect...it's not that deep .

Aid stations were unremarkable.  They all had PB&J which I partook in.  Mainly, they had Cliff bars, cliff shots, and cliff shot blocks along with pretzels, chips, some candy, and green bananas (Really Green! like "Oh, I didn't realize that that was a banana because it is way too green to be a banana").  Nothing appealed to me and I was carrying enough food to sustain me (Gu's, stinger waffles, brownies), so the routine became grab a couple sandwich quarters and keep it moving.

By mile 22 I was sore and I started questioning whether or not I had it in me to finish.  At mile 28 I got my drop bag, changed into some fresh shoes and socks, pulled out the Ipod and put my head down for the next 12 miles.  Everything was a struggle in this section, but I amazed myself by following "the plan" (run the downhills, flats, and moderate inclines, walk the steep stuff).  I kept telling myself "you've got to hold up your end of the bargain"...not really sure what bargain I was referring to, but that was the controlling thought in my head for the next couple hours (it worked!).  I got a nice mental boost also from Rodney Atkins telling me "If you're going through Hell, keep on going, don't slow down, if you're scared don't show it, you might get out before the devil even knows you're there".  I can neither confirm nor deny whether there was loud singing occuring at this time.

I pulled up at the mile 40 aid station and I knew I had it.  I could make 10 miles walking and beat the 14 hour cutoff.  I took extra long at the aid station then headed back out.  I fell in with a group of 5 or 6 who were making good time through the rest of the miles.  With 5 miles to go, I was warned of the last major climb, which was probably the steepest of the day.  It was about 400 feet of climbing...nothing to get upset about.  Overall, I was unimpressed by the last climb...lots of hype.  After the hill, I caught finish line fever and started moving well.  All day long, my approximations were that I would come in just over 12 hours.  With 4 miles to go, I realized that with a little hustle I could sneak under 12 hours.  I came down the home stretch and pushed like I was running a 5k.  It felt great.  After 11:52:09 I was done!

Most of the vendors were packed up by the time I finished...The Sierra Nevada booth was not.  I had a couple beers, chatted with a couple of the guys that I leap-frogged with throughout the day, then made the 40 minute drive home.

All in all, the race was not as "big" and "city-fied" as I had worried about.  The race was well staffed and well run.  The $115 race week registration was reasonable.  Volunteers were great.  The wave start was actually really nice and it seemed like I finished near the people I was running with during mile 2.  I'm really proud of this race.  I wasn't super trained or prepared, but I took what the day gave me and finished strong...I think it was a better overall effort than Stone Mill, even if it was an hour slower (more elevation, more technical).  Really happy to get another 50 miler under my belt...you can't buy that feeling...I love it!

I love long RRs, great job on the race

I love long RRs, great job on the race

I was trying to keep it short!  It's nice to have an outlet to speak about 50 miles like its a normal thing.  Every other interaction I have with people pretty much stops at the "50 miles!?!" point.  I thought of so much stuff I didn't include too...thanks for reading!

You're welcome! 

You will be saying "thank you" once you are at Manitou's Revenge.  50k would not be a training run at this stage in the game.  50 miles on the other hand is great to line you up for your 100k thingy and then the beast of a race (which will be here before you know it).

Thanks for sharing.

I don't mean long as in that long, I mean long as in the race is long RRs about 5ks and 10ks and stuff are so short and not a lot in there. I love a good detailed report, talking about the hills, the challenge, the mental anguish.... things like that

 

I was trying to keep it short!  It's nice to have an outlet to speak about 50 miles like its a normal thing.  Every other interaction I have with people pretty much stops at the "50 miles!?!" point.  I thought of so much stuff I didn't include too...thanks for reading!

You're welcome! 

 

You will be saying "thank you" once you are at Manitou's Revenge.  50k would not be a training run at this stage in the game.  50 miles on the other hand is great to line you up for your 100k thingy and then the beast of a race (which will be here before you know it).

 

Thanks for sharing.

When you're right you're right!  Thanks!  You're 100% right...it seemed like it would be too much beforehand, but I'm so glad I did the 50 miles...I'm ballparking my time at Manitous to be in the 16-18 hour range...so yeah, a 50k wouldn't have put much of a dent in that.  Thanks again for being an enabler!

Good Job. Glad to hear it went well on so little training.  I love that Rodney Atkins song, it's a great running song.

Nice job Jamezilla...funny the shit that goes through our head while running.