So as I look back on my training the questions start to creep in…Did I do enough?..Did I run enough hills?...Did I run enough miles?...Did I learn enough about hydration and nutrition to fuel myself through 100 miles? I have talked with many individuals who have told me that no matter how much you do you will always ask if you did enough. So I guess it-is-what-it-is and all I can do is taper now and make sure I get to the start healthy and rested. In May I took two weeks off, pretty much, because of a nagging knee injury that continued to get worse between March and May. There was a lot of tightness on the inside of my knees and eventually a lot of pain behind my left knee. I finally decide to have x-rays and an MRI done and they found nothing acute…which provided peace-of-mind at least that all I needed was rest. Low and behold…my pain is gone. I have run a couple of long runs since then, including the big Memorial Day training runs of 50 miles on Saturday, 5 on Sunday and 22 on Monday, followed by 22 mile night run on following Saturday and have no pain or tightness to show for them (knock on wood). That was two back-to-back 70 mile weeks which by far were the highest for me ever. I followed that up with another 30 mile run this last weekend over the top from Squaw to Robinsons…no pain. Taking that time off was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done in my 36 years of running. Encouragement from friends and family really helped…but skipping Miwok and Silver State still took a lot of mental fortitude. Funny huh…that NOT running the races took mental strength? Well it did. I’m glad I made those decisions though because now I am virtually pain-free (KOW again!).
So now I look forward to staying healthy, getting my crew and pacers organized and ready, and ramping down the miles while I taper. If it is hot out…I will get some heat training in also…cuz ya just don’t know what race day will deal ya. I am betting on HOT! I will get out there in the dead heat of the day and get some time on my feet. Not too much…but enough to be exposed to it without wearing out my legs. Gotta be smart at this point. Also gotta keep the ankles healthy and keep from other flare-ups of any kind physically.
The last major task is getting my head straight. How do you get your head around running for 28+ hours and over 100 miles? Like eating an elephant…one bite at a time…
The Race Plan:
My plan is to get myself to Robinson Flat (mile 30) at a slow and easy pace. Get myself into a groove and eat and drink often. Try and calm myself down as quickly as possible without going out too quick. A 4+ mile, 2500 foot, climb is a good speed bump to start with…so that should help. I just ran this section this last weekend, for only the second time, and had forgotten how rocky and technical it is. My goal will not only to be to hydrate and eat, but to also not let the little nagging technical areas get to me mentally. Also all the little climbs you encounter along the way… including Duncan Canyon…which is always longer than I remember. Get to Robinson Flat well under the cutoff feeling okay and fueled up for the canyons. That’s the goal. It’ll be the first place I see my crew…so that will definitely help too ;)!
The next section is the canyons and probably the toughest part of the course. It’s the section that I have spent the most time in during my 5+ months of training. I have run in these canyons several times with some great people and learned a lot from my own experience and talking to others along the way. The goal in this section is to get through each canyon one at a time. Don’t kill the quads too much on the way down and slow and steady on the way up. I intend to enjoy the river crossing as the base of Devils Thumb and take a quick break at El Dorado Creek as well to cool off. Once through Michigan Bluff slow and steady to the Volcano Creek decent and take it easy on the way down. Break at the creek to cool off, then climb up to Bath Road. I’ve been going back and forth about running the Bath Road section or walking and in training I have done both. We’ll just have to see how I feel. Will have someone meet me there from my crew…possibly my son. Then run down Foresthill Road to the Aid Station. Guess what, though…the RACE AINT OVER HERE!
Lots of people get to ForestHill and have this mental “whew” happen and then mentally let down and drop during the Cal Street decent to the river. I plan to be smart about this. I am hoping to get there by 8pm-ish. My plan is the take some time to drink in the atmosphere, refuel and possibly change some clothing, prepare for night running, and then pick up Roger (my pacer) and high-tail it out of there.
I’ve run this next section several times also, including as the last part of 50 miles on the Saturday of Memorial Day weekend. It a deceptively difficult section in that it can mess with you mentally. First of all…if you get it in your head that it’s all downhill to the river…you will be sadly disappointed! There are several climbs including a really nasty one just before Ford’s Bar aid station and another on the dirt road about a mile from the crossing. These can really mess with your head if you aren’t ready for them. Also there are pounding downhills which will feel quite lovely on your pulverized quads…most notable are the decent out of Cal 2 and good ole “elevator shaft”! The other thing to keep in mind is “just because you hear the river doesn’t mean you’re almost there”! You’ll hear the river like it’s RIGHT THERE and still be over 6 miles out. Don’t trust your ears…trust the distance…it’s 16 miles! Roger will have to probably remind me of this several times ;)!
The crossing at the river is one of the coolest things I’ve done during a run…even though I was only a pacer when I did it. We did it around midnight in 2012 and I expect to be doing it about the same time this year. That year it was cooler out and we were shivering as we got out on the other side. The water went up to mid-way between my belly and chest that year as we crossed on foot using the cable. Will probably the same this year. Maybe lower? It was cold when we got out on the other side. I will again get the soup at Rucky Far and drink it hiking up to Green Gate. That’s about a two mile climb up to my next crew stop and pacer swap. Also I plan on having more soup when I get there from my crew. Perhaps a wardrobe change to get out of the wet clothes. It will be 1-2amish at this point and it will be nice to see my bleary-eyed crew members at this point. This is also where I will say thank you to Roger and hello to Helen…my pacer and companion over the final stretch.
My plan for this stretch is just to keep going! I’ve run this twice in the same week after memorial day and one of those was at night. This is the part of the trail I am most familiar with. The first Aid Station, ALT, is also where I just read somewhere that most people drop. Mainly because they underestimate this final 20 mile section. It is quite runnable, even in the dark, with only a few hills to walk when you have fresh legs. I won’t be fresh but I’ll try to keep moving on these as each mile ticks by. Helen will be cracking the whip! The last two times I’ve run this it has seemed shorter than previously to me…I doubt that will be the case on race day ;). I’ll wind and climb my way to ALT Aid Station, and then go through as quickly as possible. Then we will wind our way through the little canyons to that wonderful wooden bridge that means we are almost to Brown’s Bar. This stretch will just be about mentally focusing on keeping my legs running (shuffling)…relax and run! The decent down from Brown’s to Quarry Rd will feel wonderful on my legs by then (not really :() but it will be nice to hit Quarry Rd. Then it’s “keep the legs moving through the rollers” until the hard left turn that heads back up to the ridge. It’s a little over a mile and it is rocky and steep in places. Just gotta keep positive and keep moving at this point. Don’t let it get to me. Then it’s rollers to the 49 crossing where I will see my crew again! This will be a nice place to recharge a bit for the final push. Next jog past the short cut trail and then power hike up to the meadow. Then hopefully I have enough in my legs to toboggan run it down to No Hands! Then it’s 3 miles to the Finish!
From there it is trail that I’ve run a hundred times! Heck Bruce, Tony, Joe, James, and I trained on this section every Wednesday earlier this year week after week. At this point I’ll just have to put my head down and keep moving. Don’t anticipate…just keep moving. Luckily I’ve done this finish all the way to the track a couple of time during the last couple of weeks too. I’ll know to not anticipate the finish after the Mile 99 sign…still lots of running. There should be lot’s of encouragement out there and my crew can pick me up at Robies all that should help. This will be exciting…a celebration at this point.
Well that’s the plan. All you can do is plan and prepare for the inevitable unexpected events that make a 100 mile race so much fun! I will have a great crew out there along with awesome, experienced pacers. They will be invaluable as the day unfolds. It takes a “village”…right? I am a firm believer. I have been lucky enough to run with experienced people, who have run this several times, as well as wide-eyed rookies like me. I’ve learned valuable tips and mental prep from the veterans and I have learned that I am not alone in my doubts from the rookies. Now is the time to work on focus, work on attitude, plan and expect the unexpected.
Most people think of your legs when you tell them you are running 100 miles…the physical part. I have learned over the past 5 months that it will truly take a well-trained mind to make it to the finish. One that can stay positive in the lows and stay in control in the highs. One that never believes that enough is enough or listens to the little voices telling you to stop. Am I over-dramatizing this? Maybe. But for an average guy like me…it’s going to take everything I’ve got both physically and mentally to get through this day…I never doubt that for a minute. The next 16 days will be spent finalizing plans and getting my head in the right place for this. Focus, fortitude, confidence and remembering my mantra for the day…
Pain is Temporary but Regret is Forever!
May Stats: 19 runs, 211 miles, and 21,184ft elev gain
Year to date: 108 runs, 1,158 miles and 148,784 ft elev gain
