Notes
I waited until the last minute to register because I wasn't really sure I wanted to embark on another trail ultra race, but I ended up signing up for the Boulder Field 100K in Hickory Run State Park in PA. It's located about an hour away from me to the northwest.
I was expecting something a little more difficult than the races that are put on around Blue Marsh lake by this same race director. What I got was something much more difficult than I had planned for. First of all, Hurricane Ida turned the trails into a swampy marsh. There was standing water in a lot of locations throughout the course, which made it impossible not to get your feet completely soaked. The course was a figure-8 type course where the first 13 miles was more challenging than the second 18 miles. The 100K folks did the figure-8 twice while the 50K folks did it once. The 18 milers just did the top portion.
I was dead last place for at least the first 5 miles. Then, at the first aid station, I think someone who was right ahead of me stayed there and maybe dropped as I never saw him again. After that, I was still in last place when someone came flying up behind me who was in the 100K. I think he overslept or something and got a late start. I passed another guy sometime in the 3 miles before the start/finish transition area. It took me a whopping 3 hours and 30 minutes just to do the first 13 miles. Now granted, I was trying to skirt around all the standing water and walked much of that first section because it was so technical and, I didn't want to risk rolling an ankle. So I was really at the back of the pack.
The 18 mile upper figure-8 section was still challenging, full of boggy marsh conditions and some technical sections but did have longer stretches of runnable sections. There were also 3 or 4 creek crossings including 1 going through a tunnel. There was a nice runnable section from aid station 6 until about 3 miles away from the start/finish transition, after which you went into the woods for another mile with some tricky trails. Once that turned onto a service road, I caught up with another girl who was also in the 100K in the last 2 miles of that first loop, and we talked about not looking forward to the second lap. We also talked about not making the cutoff since we were getting close. The last couple of miles of that first loop went uphill then downhill and seemed to take forever. We ended up getting back to the start/finish transition after an elapsed time of about 7:10, and the cutoff was 7:30 so we were very close.
By the time I got out there it was 7:17. Doing it the second time was demoralizing, though this time I ran a lot of the first 13 miles, taking greater risks by running over technical trails. I also wasn't as concerned about getting my feet wet. I ended up finishing the 13 miles this time in 3 hours flat. I got back to the start/finish transition with 10:20 elapsed. The cut off was 11 hours. I was definitely getting tired and I had an upset stomach. Not sure what it was, if it was just trapped gas, but it was bothering me and I kept wondering what it was that I might be eating that was causing it. I was thinking it was the gels, but not sure. It did keep me from increasing my pace too much. The second time through the 18 miles had a more deserted feel as there were no longer any 18 milers or 50K folks on the course. I did start increasing my pace sometime just before the boulder field crossing and aid station 5. I started to just run through any and everything. Part of this was just due to fatigue. The sun was starting to go down and the shadows were beginning to place tricks on you after aid station 5. I continued to push the pace, wanting to see if I could get this done before it got too dark. It seemed to take forever to get to aid station 6. I passed a few guys along here, all of whom were not looking too good. Finally, that last 5 miles again. It took 1 hour 15 minutes in the first loop to complete that section. This time I was looking to improve that if I could. I was subconsciously trying to see if it was possible to break 14 hours. It didn't seem likely at the start of that section, but as I continued to push the pace, it remained a possibility. It was slowly getting darker and darker in the thick of the woods, too, with the sun going down, so it was harder to see where you were going. I tried to remain alert so as not to miss a pink ribbon marking the course.
The last big hill seemed to never end again. Somebody I passed said a little over 1 mile to go. I looked at my watch and it said 12 minutes before 7pm. I had 12 minutes to get under 14 hours. I started sprinting (well, not really). Finally, I took the right turn onto the road downhill that took you down to the start/finish transition and the finish line. I started flying down that hill, and it seemed like it would never end. Finally, down into the day use area and down through the finish line chute. 13:58. Crap. I pulled it off. Not like it's a fantastic time or anything but what a last mile push.
I consumed a variety of foods during this run: fig newtons, boiled potatoes with salt, bananas, cliff bars and expresso gels for the most part. I did have a nibble of pork at one aid station and a slice of beet at another. Tailwind, water, and gatorade when the tailwind was out were the fluids consumed.
In the end, though I brought an extra pair of shoes, I wore the same shoes throughout. I just made 3 sock changes during the race.