Notes
Was going to drop at 100K aid station -11:42. After sitting for 30+ minutes went back out but once on the trails was seeing double couldn't focus on the rocks and roots and head was swimming. Turned back around and turned in the chip.
Race started out a mess for me. Took a wrong turn 3 miles in, got behind at least 10 minutes and had to walk for a while behind maybe 70+ runners then when I got impatient wasted a lot of energy running on the sides of the trail trying to pass. Finally got back to where I wanted to be about 8 miles in. I felt good and managing the effort the first loop and was in 4th place at the end of the first loop. Two miles into the second loop I was in 2nd place. Somewhere around 50 miles I started to feel really crappy, light headed, legs were lead, I figured the light headedness would go away once it cooled off and just focused on running, trying not to walk too much after all I was going pretty slow to begin with. Around mile 61 my legs said screw you and I had to walk in to the aid station at mile 62. My head was on fire and I couldn't cool down.
At that point I was defeated, I couldn't run anymore, I couldn't eat, I couldn't focus. I got into the aid station and said I'm done. The volunteers tell me to sit down, think it through. I'm still in 2nd place. In my heart I know it's over but I go with it, try to take the food/drink they give me, ice on my head etc. After 30 minutes I am getting restless, let's either get this done or not. I start running up the bike bath to the trail and am forced to walk with 10 minutes. I get to the single track and can barely run. My vision is screwed up, hard to describe but if I look at the ground I feel dizzy and it is like each rock is in two or three different spots at once. After 10 minutes of this I realize it is not getting better and I finally turn around to drop. I knew if I kept going it could get pretty dangerous especially in the dark with screwed up vision- it just wasn't worth it for the day I was having. It was the toughest decision I've ever had to make.