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Ran my first 50K and I'm VERY unhappy (Read 267 times)

runnermacoy


    I'm male, in my early 30's and I've run 3 marathons with my PB being 4:01. My PB for a half-marathon is 1:49. I'm in Toronto (sea level) and have done 100% of my running there.

    I went to Calgary to do my first 50K and I feel like I completely sucked. I ran it in 5:25 and I came in 85th out of 134. It was mostly flat and mostly on road but the heat was a problem and I felt some differences with the altitude change (3400 ft above sea level when I've only run AT sea level) I was also tired. Ironically, I was the only Ontario runner there, 99% of the runners in the Ultra were from Alberta.

    I failed at my goal which was to run the whole thing continiously like I do with every one of my runs. I ran non stop 35K and then for the last 15K, I did about 4 small walk breaks and overall I think I walked 2KM and ran 48KM. I wanted to play it safe because I travelled to a different province JUST to do this run and my family came with me. I didn't want to risk passing out in the middle of the run and blowing everything. 

    My question to you is this; Am I beating myself too much over this? Did I do better than my mind is making me think I did or is my self-hate right now justified.

      Your self-hate is not justified. It’s just running.

       

      As far as your race performance, altitude does make a difference, and can hit you hard if you haven’t trained in it.

      Dave

      Christirei


        you also mentioned heat, which can be a huge factor in a race not going how you would like. It doesn't sound like ultimately you had to walk that much of the race, chalk it up to a good experience and learn from it for the next one

        wcrunner2


        Are we there, yet?

          3400 ft elevation shouldn't be that much of a problem, but the heat can be a major issue, especially if it was much above 20.  I don't offhand remember the rate of slowdown, but I could see it easily adding 15-30 minutes to your time vs a race at 10-15.

           

          MTA: that extra hour to hour and a half on the course also requires more attention to your eating and drinking.

           2024 Races:

                03/09 - Livingston Oval Ultra 6-Hour, 22.88 miles

                05/11 - D3 50K
                05/25 - What the Duck 12-Hour

                06/17 - 6 Days in the Dome 12-Hour.

           

           

               

          keeponrunning


            Not to come off as harsh, but you need to let it go and learn from it.  It's only 7.8km longer, but ultras are a different beast when it comes to fuelling and heat plays a major role.  I'm about 2 hours from you in London and know there's plenty of ultras left in this area if you don't mind trails-- look up Happy Trails Running for a number of events.  There's also Iroquoia Trail Test, Phoenix Trail Race (which a couple friends of mine are RDs for and run a fantastic event), and Batawa Fatass that I can think of off the top of my head.  I've only ever done trail 50ks on fairly challenging courses (each in a different way) and my PR is over 2 hours slower than my marathon PR.  The fact that I can tell you my road HM PR down to the second but can't tell you my 50k PR with close to that degree of accuracy tells you something about the ultra mindset.

            Sulphur Springs 50km-- Ancaster, ON-- May 28, 2022

            Tally in the Valley 12 hours-- Dundas, ON -- July 30, 2022 (Support SickKids Toronto)

            Stokely Creek-- 56km-- Sault Ste. Marie, ON-- Sept. 24, 2022

             

             

            tom1961


            Old , Ugly and slow

              Just saying running a 50k in the heat makes me tired.

              for me heat is a big factor

              first race sept 1977 last race sept 2007

               

              2019  goals   1000  miles  , 190 pounds , deadlift 400 touch my toes

                Congrats on Finishing  your First 50K!!!   Be proud of yourself and your new PR.  There are plenty of other ones out there if you want to work on improving your time.    Also I agree with the comment about ultra-mindset...

                "Shut up Legs!" Jens Voigt


                Prince of Fatness

                  Yes, you are beating yourself up too much.

                  Not at it at all. 

                    How was your eating? Not eating until late often results in a horrible last 5-10 miles in a measly 50k.

                    Also, "mostly on the road" means you took a real beating. 5+ hours bashing hard pavement? Nuts to THAT. Go for a trail 50k next time.

                    60-64 age group  -  University of Oregon alumni  -  Irreverent and Annoying

                    runnermacoy


                      Late eating was not an issue.

                       

                      Does anyone ever take walk breaks? Just wanting to see how common it is?

                      keeponrunning


                        Late eating was not an issue.

                         

                        Does anyone ever take walk breaks? Just wanting to see how common it is?

                         

                        I've walk-run all my ultras to date (6 ultras).  I usually run the flats and downhills and hike the hills.

                        Sulphur Springs 50km-- Ancaster, ON-- May 28, 2022

                        Tally in the Valley 12 hours-- Dundas, ON -- July 30, 2022 (Support SickKids Toronto)

                        Stokely Creek-- 56km-- Sault Ste. Marie, ON-- Sept. 24, 2022

                         

                         

                        CanadianMeg


                        #RunEveryDay

                          Cut yourself some slack. You ran your first 50K. It's too bad that you can't enjoy the fact you ran your first and, no matter the time, your first one makes it a PR for that distance. Re-read the post from keeponrunning about perspective and other races; she is smart!

                          Half Fanatic #9292. 

                          Game Admin for RA Running Game 2023.

                            Does anyone NOT take walk breaks? Maybe not in a flat 50k....

                             

                            My first and only 50k this February had me post a time of 5:52, PR! Of course it had 5000' of elevation gain, more than half the course was loose rock and sand, and many of the hills in the last 6-7 miles were so steep you could not run up OR down them. And I was averaging about 25 miles a week over the 6 months prior to race day. Oh, and I'm really old. And fat (for a runner; 5-10 175).

                             

                            But, PR!

                            60-64 age group  -  University of Oregon alumni  -  Irreverent and Annoying

                            berylrunner


                            Rick

                              I think you set too lofty of a goal for your race.  The time lines up with your marathon time.  You did well considering the altitude difference and the heat, so don't be hard on yourself.

                              As for walking, most people do it in ultras and as funny as it sounds, it takes practice.   Mainly the transitions.  Also, walking fast.

                              You will do better on your next.  Join the Ultra runners group here.  We keep a training thread going.

                              12-22   Last One Standing  - dnf 37 miles

                              1-23  Sun Marathon - 3:53

                              3-4-23  Red Mountain 55k - 7:02

                              4-15-23  Zion 100 - 27:59

                               

                               

                              dumrunner


                                I think you should be happy with your performance! First 50K, you're an ultrarunner! Lots of lunacy ahead of you!

                                 

                                It sounds like it was the heat. What were conditions like for your marathon and half marathon PRs? If they were ideal, I'd be more inclined to think the heat was a factor. It's early in the summer, even here in VA ... no one is acclimated yet.

                                 

                                As for walking, that's totally normal and a reasonable strategy. I practice fast walking and transitioning from walking to running all the time. As you progress up in the distances (and I hope you will), you will walk, especially on trails.

                                 

                                Congrats, keep it up!

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