Another JFK 50 mile RR, it is really, really long ;) (Read 531 times)

So I returned to the JFK 50 Mile race this year. I attempted this race last year but injured my leg, (I think it was a pulled tendon) early in the race at about the 6 mile mark and ended up withdrawing at the Snyders Landing aid station at mile 34.4. This year I had a very aggressive racing schedule that included 4 full marathons, 1 half Ironman, 1 full Iron man and various shorter triathlons running events. Up until the Marine Corp Marathon my training was on track and my body was holding up very well. After Marine Corp my knees were very achy and painful and I was beginning to doubt whether running JFK was going to happen. I did get in a 10 mile run with Reese but ended up feeling pretty achy. I used the rest of that week for a couple of very easy runs and spinning on the bike trainer as we had a half marathon we were running as a family in San Antonio Texas which was 6 days before JFK. It was fun running the half with Reese and Suzanne but again after the race my knees were very achy and sore especially going up and down stairs. I was really beginning to doubt my ability to survive the Appalachian Trail (AT) part of the race. I did absolutely no running or training of any kind for the next five days. And by the time Friday rolled around I had no pain but still doubted what the AT would do. Reese, Suzanne and I along with Karen headed up to Hagerstown MD Friday afternoon for packet pickup and dinner with the Reston Runners. It was cold and windy and the forecast for tomorrow was more of the same. I woke at 4:15 Saturday morning and shaved and started layering on the clothing, wearing Underamour underwear, running tights, running pants, compression shirt, Long sleeve tech shirt, short Sleeved RR team Shirt, running jacket, buff for my head and running hat along with running gloves. We had breakfast poolside at the hotel (they provided) and then drove down the Boonsboro high school for the pre-race meeting and group photo. The temp was 19F and there was a strong and stead breeze, it was downright cold and was going to be a long day but at least the AT should be snow free. This race can be broken up into four sections; basically a 5K on the road heading up to the AT, then approximately a half marathon on the AT followed by a marathon on the C&O Canal Towpath and ending up with about a 12K on hilly roads to the finish at the high school in Westernport, MD. My crew consisted of KevinH, and Suzanne, both of which crewed for me last year and Reese crewing for the first time. We first had to walk a mile to the start in the town of Boonsboro, MD. We got there just in time for the start and ran an easy pace as we climbed up the mountain to Turner’s Gap and the AT. In a race of this type my and many other’s strategy is to run the flats and down hills and walk any uphill. An uphill being well defined by AnnaB as anything you could roll a pencil down. The 5K, Boonsboro to Turner’s Gap The 5K running up to the towpath is about 3 miles and pretty uneventful as you gradually climb to the AT. I ran with EllenM and we planned to take it very easy and walked when we should. Soon enough we finished that section. The Half Marathon Turners Gap to Weverton Clifs AS we turned onto the AT, Ellen took a quick bio break and I a minute or so later we were on the trail and sticking to our plan very well we planned to stick together we planned to stick together and take it very easy until the towpath where she would pick up the pace and leave me. Ellen did a great job reining me in and setting up the perfect pace. Unfortunately before the first crew point we got separated by a minute or so but I knew I would see her as she motored by me on the towpath, and I’d probably get a good natured earful about ditching her. I ended up pulling a bit ahead of Ellen and then a group of runners ended up getting in between us and we got separated. Pulling into the fits crew point at Gathland was awesome. Unlike last year when I was already in pain, I felt great. As I came down the trail I saw Reese and my friend Dave who drove up early in the morning to help crew and take pictures, he snapped this great photo. I made this a very quick stop, Reese asked me if I needed anything, which I didn’t and he relayed to Kevin and Suzann that I was fine. I grabbed a cup of Gatorade and rolled on through and back onto the trail. I was very anxious to navigate the rest of the trail and stay healthy and get on the towpath. The AT is a very hard trail to run, it is very rocky and with the leaves off the trees and on the trail many of the rocks, stumps and roots are hidden, just within to trip you. You must stay very focused on this section and maintain footing. There are many instances of bloody faces, sprained ankles and broken bones. I did not want to be part of that club. I passed the sweeper that was following the last 5:00 am starter. This is mental boost to catch people that started two full hours before you early in the race. From here on I wanted to make sure that I passed 5:00 am starters and they didn’t pass me. If I could keep that up I would finish before the 12 hour cut off. I heard a train and remembered that we needed to cross the tracks at the towpath, so I was glad to hear it now as it would be gone by the time I got to the tracks, I didn’t want to be standing there waiting for a train to pass at the clock kept ticking! Near the end of the AT the footing gets even trickier and just before the next aid station and crew point you hit a very hard series of switchbacks that are very steep and hard to navigate. Last year this was a very painful part of the trail, this year I navigated this section with a cautious ease. I rolled into the Weverton Crew point and my wonderful crews had a chair and change of shoes ready to go. Reese grabbed me a cup of chicken noodle soup for the Helen and the Reston runners, that was probably the best thing I ate all day! I moved out of the Crew stop and back onto a single track trail that would take me the Weverton Aid station and then onto the towpath. At the aid station I took a Suceed and two Ibuprofen as insurance and the crossed the tracks. A Marathon on the Towpath. My plan here was to run for ten minutes and then take a 1 minute walk break. I tired this twice and realized that the ratio was a bit off, and that I needed more than one minute of walking, so I reprogrammed my watch for 10/2 and tried that. This didn’t seem to work well for me either so I tried 8/2 and found that worked much better and I settled into a rhythm. Many people do not like this part of the run as they think it is very boring. I like it, the scenery is very changeable as you run along the Potomac River for most of this section and I really enjoy it. Also you pass by Harpers Ferry. There were a few tourists who walked the bridge across the river and were taking pictures and clearly didn’t understand why a bunch of crazy runners would be out running for so long! The aid stations along here were well placed and I stopped at each and grabbed a couple of pretzels, some potato chips and cups of water/Gatorade/Coke. I had told Reese at the last crew point that I wanted to switch my fuel belt so I decided I needed to make sure my water bottles were empty before I got there. This was good as it forced me to take in fluids that I probably wouldn’t have. Even though it was not hot, I knew you lose just as much, if not more fluids in the cold, you just don’t notice it as it evaporates fast. It was cold and we were running into the wind for the entire 26 miles which was pretty hard, plus I don’t think the temperatures got over 32F the whole day and adding in the wind chill, it was just darned cold! Soon enough I was at the Antietam Aqueduct, were Reese switch my fuel belt and handed me fresh bag of Sports Beans and Clif Blocks. He even made sure the bags were partially opened so it would be easy for me, what a nice boy! Here Dave joined me to run to the next crew point which was 11 miles. It was great to have some friendly and steady company. I know that having Dave with me helped me focus and maintain pace, he did a great job of pushing the pace, but just by a little bit, so we wouldn’t run to hard but that we wouldn’t dawdle either. It was great as he both made me focus on the task at hand but also helped me disassociate as we.. How he knew when to do either I’ll never know but he has a great future as a pacer! The only area he needs to work on are his joke telling abilities, I got the first one but the second was very long and I just couldn’t focus on what he was saying. I remember thinking, “OK Dave is telling me a joke, There is an old person, there is a cane, wait someone just shot a beaver, where did the beaver come from, was there a cane? Did the old person shoot the beaver or the doctor? Wait there is a doctor? Was the old person shot?” Then I knew Dave finished the joke but I had to confess to him that I didn’t get. Dave explained the joke and I still didn’t get it. I thought bout it for a bit and then I had to ask him to explain it again. Oh, now I get it! Dave’s third joke was much, much better! As Dave and I were running we passed the Snyder’s landing aid station at mile 34.4. This is where I DNF’d last year, this year I felt so much different. It was a real mental boost to roll through that aid station. The other mental boost was that we were steadily passing all the runners that started at 5:00 am. You could tell them because they had two bib numbers that were orange, one on the front and one on the back. Dave also noticed that I was not eating much, so I grabbed a bunch of cookies. Did that satisfy Dave, nooooo, he cautioned me that a couple of cookies were not going to back up for the thousands of calories that I was burning. Thanks again Dave! From here on every step I made was both a PR and a mental boost. Every aid station Dave would comment that I was going to finish his thing in style! All too soon we were at the Mondale crew point and I changed shoes for the last time and runners, Kevin would take over from Dave for the next 8 miles. I decide to play a joke on Suzanne and faked a pretty good limp and told Dave to get in front of me and start shaking his head in disappointment. Suzanne took it hook line and sinker but didn’t get too made at me when I told her I felt great and was just faking. I changed shoes for the last time and Kevin and I cruised out, I stopped and grabbed some drink and chips and stuffed some pretzels in my pockets. It is always great to run with Kevin as he is just the nicest person you’d want to meet. Our conversation flowed easily and we talked about everything from triathlons, to running and training, to skiing, all my favorite subjects. The only problem I had was that the 8 minutes of running seemed more like 16 and the two minute walk breaks seemed more like 15 seconds. I was starting to fad fast but mentally I felt really, really good. As a matter of fact, all day long I did not have any “bad patches,” I kept waiting for one but I felt really good and positive. It was crazy, Kevin helped take my mind off the task at hand so well, that I couldn’t believe my eyes, when I saw the aid station that was handing out reflective vests. This meant to that we were off the towpath and onto the last 8 miles of road. How can this be? Man talk about a mental boost! The last 12K on the Road I told Kevin that our strategy would change from here on. The new plan was we would walk all the up hills, run all the flats and down hills and anytime I felt like walking I would just say that this sure did feel like a hill to me (even if it was flat or down) I knew I was now a JFK finisher as there was plenty of time left on the clock. So now it was a question of would I finish in the day light: maybe but not likely. Would I finish before 10:30:00 it was possible, or would I finish before 11 hours? Many love it when you hit the road section. Not me, the pounding of the day really took it’s toll and my legs were getting very sore, from my ankles up to my quads, around to my hamstrings and down to my calves, nothing but an aching soreness. I probably walked more that I should have and when I ran it was more of a steady fast shuffle. My other problem was that my vision was getting a little blurry, I don’t know if it was from the wind all day drying out my eyes or if my corneas were starting to freeze or maybe a little of both, but I did know that it was a temporary condition so I wasn’t too worried. But I maintained forward motion and that was enough for me. I also knew that at the four miles to go mark, I would switch runners for the last time and run with Suzanne, my very best friend in the world! On the road section the race director placed signs with miles to go so it was a nice countdown, although it the closer I got, the longer it seemed to take. Finally I hit the Downsville aid station where I saw Suzanne and Reese, and said goodbye to Kevin. It was really fun to run with Suzanne, we ran easy and walked and talked a lot. This was my favorite time, I was very close to finishing, and even though I was not going to finish in the daylight (it was already passed that) and I was probably not going to make 10:30:00, I knew I would break 10:45:00 and I was with my wife, having a great time! With the sun well down and the wind still up I was getting pretty cold, but with each step I was closer to the end of an incredible journey. Suzanne and I cruised through the town and soon enough we hit a small uphill and ran into the lights and the finish line! I actually had enough gas in the tank for a final “sprint” for about 50 yards and crossed the line strong. It was great to get into the school and warmth, a nice massage from Clif and I was on to the showers, but all the hot water was gone, so cleaned up as best I could, without risking hypothermia and went back out to check on my fellow Reston Runners. I sat with Helen and go t the rundown on who was in and who was still out, who was in the medical area (KeithW with a case of hypothermia but ended up just fine) and unfortunately who was in the hospital (one runner who was running crooked and sideway was taken off the course). I was worried about Anna and Pete as I didn’t see them all day and knew they were behind me, but I could not get any real status, so when I finally saw them enter the gym, well and with finisher’s medals, I was ecstatic! I finally beat the beast and the record now stands at JFK50:1, KevinS:1 and I’m calling this contest a draw! The question that everyone has been asking me: is a 50 mil run harder than an Ironman triathlon? Yes, for me, running 50 miles is harder than swimming, biking and running for 140.6 miles!

only a superstar could have done that. congrats Kevin!! wow I don't even know what to say. a great report for a great race. such an inspiration to me. thank you! enjoy your well earned Dec. good nite see you in Jan!!

Man, Kevin. Your RR is incredible. WAY TO GO!

Congrats. I don't think anyone really says they like the road do they? After all that soft path and trail running, it feels like the hardest surface on earth. Now, will there be a rubber match?

WTG!! Congrats...way to go back out there and get it done this year! one thing I must know...what ever happened to the beaver who shot the old person with the cane? Was there a doctor?

I'll plead guilty on the lousy jokes. I was trying to distract him. And I did. With bad jokes.

and ... it was the best part of the day. I think the old man- cane-doctor-beaver joke will go down as the most remembered part of any run I have ever had, and is now my favorite joke of all time which is ironic given that it was something I couldn't comprehend at the time

He's underplaying the joke he played on his wife at the 38 mile mark. She was seriously worried. Others came up after he ran off asking if he was OK. I kept reassuring them that he was "perfect". It takes some serious trust in your marriage to pull that one off. She's out there in cold, supporting a 10 hour race and Kevin thinks to himself, "Lets mess with her.". Nice

Yes, kids don't try that at home! Seriously, she was a good sport about it but I should not have done that. I claim temporary insanity. Dave, the picture comes through very well, thanks! I haven't' had a chance but I'll check DW's camera to see if she got a picture of us running together, I hope so!