St. Pat's 24-hour report.
Short version: 
It rained/misted all day long and finally stopped most of the night. And got down to the low 30s.

I got 45 miles (15 loops) and got really really cold. 
The. 
End.


Long version - REALLY long and you have been warned!: 

My overall goal of the weekend was to see where my stamina was and do my best to keep moving for a lot of hours. This was my first serious event on real trails with roots and holes and plain old dirt since the accident in March. I always want more miles, but I believe I can say it was a successful race for me. I continue to learn more about ultras and myself at each event.

I got there early on Friday afternoon and took a nap in the car. Later I walked the 3-mile route and took a photo every 10 steps to create a video of the course. I will put that up later this week. It was great seeing some friends - Tiffany Dore, Amy Gersey, Curt Chambers and Barry Smoloff. And there were others I had seen at other ultras. Many knew about my accident and were very supportive. Some told me that the word got out very quickly about my wreck in the ultra world and they had been praying for me. That meant a lot to me.
Saturday morning, I think it was in the low 40's and light rain/mist which pretty much continued all day, sometimes with some wind. It was hard to get dressed just right at that temperature "edge". At least for me, I was either sweating too much or getting a little cold. I kept my long rain jacket, with a hood on, most of the day and just changed shirts now and then. And that worked well for me. I was comfortable most of the time.

I wanted to average one 3-mile loop every hour - nice and easy. My first 10 loops, I was averaging around 50-53 minutes per loop. I was not pushing myself and it felt really great. Because of the accident and all of this forced walking, I believe I have become a really good and efficient walker. And that will serve me REALLY well in the future at every single ultra event. Runners new to ultras really underestimate the power of good walking skills.

I stopped at a bathroom nearly every single loop and grabbed something to eat. My hydration and nutrition were perfect at this event. After those first 10 loops, I stopped and changed into my cushy Hoka Stinson Evo shoes - they felt wonderful. I wore my Brooks Cascadias at first, with the plan that I would "treat" myself to the Hokas when I got 30 miles in. I think it was around 5 PM. I decided to get ready for the night at that time too, so I changed all of my clothes, except my running shorts. Dry buffs, hat, gloves,shirt, jacket, warmer running pants and socks. It felt great. I decided to retape my feet too - the ankle taping with Kenesio tape was holding up fine, but I fixed the pieces on my big toes and balls of my feet. But - BIG MISTAKE - I did it with regular athletic tape. During loop 11, maybe 2 miles in, I felt incredible pain in my left big toe - like a huge huge blister. I angled my foot to avoid hitting it and most of the time I could, but it slowed me down. There was no use in stopping to fix it because I had nothing with me, so I carefully moved on until I got back to the start. I ran into the barn at the start and I was afraid to look at it - I thought it was going to end the race. Fortunately, no blister. The skin was all wrinkly and the the tape had come loose and turned into a spiky weapon. It was stabbing my toe at certain angles. I lost time, but I was happy and soon out on the trail for loop 12.

Loop 12 went well and I was still a little under an hour per loop. On loop 13, which ended up being 1:05, I got hammered. That last half mile I felt unbelievable, extreme fatigue coming on. I have "hit the wall" before, but this was SO different. To me, I felt like I had reached the absolute end of every bit of stamina within me. This was not my body running out of fuel, it was just done. Those 33 miles were MUCH harder than Cleveland, because Cleveland is a flat flat flat strip of blacktop. So I wisely decided to stop and rest before I as reduced to a crawl, I mean REALLY crawling! : ) I set an alarm for 2 hours later and dove into my sleeping bag. I woke up and felt so much better. Out on the trail again - in the dark. While I was sleeping, the temps had really dropped and I should have changed into a warmer top.

Loop 14 was fine out there in the dark, but my arms were getting cold - more than I realized. And my hands. At the end of the loop 14, I thought about running into the barn to put on my Sporthill running shirt that is good down to single digits. But I did not. Soon I was getting really cold and a little unstable too. I hit a root around mile 2 and took a HUGE fall. The worst trail fall ever for me. I am glad I did not hold out my hands or I surely would have broken a wrist. I got back up and knew I should stop at the start and do something. I opted to get in my sleeping bag to warm up and rest. I set an alarm to wake me up at maybe 3:30 AM - not sure about the time. However, I just seemed to get colder and colder. Maybe I should have gone out to the fire at the start line, not sure. Next year I will bring an electric blanket - outlets are everywhere in the barn. I think around 4 AM or so, I finally felt warmish. I really had a choice to make about whether to go back out. With two more loops I would get to 51 miles - that sounded good to my ego. But I decided 45 miles was enough for where I am in my recovery. I still am not anywhere near 100% - especially my stamina and running ability - so I made the right decision. A year from now, if in that same situation, I would keep going. The. End.


Oh, I forgot to mention that I ran from Indiana to Michigan and back FIFTEEN times this weekend! True. Story. In the last mile you pass the border between Indiana and Michigan - so EVERY time I passed it, I made sure to go over the line. Even in the middle of the night! That story to tell was too good to pass up!. : )

I will make my normal race report video soon, that will tell basically the same things! : )

A big congratulations to you, Charles.  I'm sure you doctors have never had anyone with your injuries come as far along as you have now, and I know you will only get stronger.

That is SO funny! I was not delusional.

So . . . I stopped and urinated. Then I washed my hands - and grabbed some food from the nearby aid station!

Congrats!  Your recovery is really coming along nicely- so glad to hear that 

Wow!! impressive...

That would be great. He could also look at my YouTube channel and see a few videos I made after the wreck that might encourage him.

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCe-2iqe00HXfojO2OAq4HRQ