VA 10 Miler - Lynchburg, VA

I don't recommend preparing for a 10 mile race in this fashion: First, the day before run 14 miles at marathon pace(for me that's 9min miles). Then, wear your contacts too long and irritate your eyes to the point that they're swollen and painful. Schedule a swing band gig the night before and play your trombone until 11pm. Get home at about 1am. Get up at 3am and have your husband drive you 3 hours to the race(at least that part was smart). Try to sleep in the car. Pick the hilliest 10 mile road race in Virginia. Take some Excedrin to try and get the swelling out of your eye and the headache right above the eye (the little boost of caffeine doesn't hurt either). Now for the race strategy: Take advantage of the down hill in the beginning and start too fast (7:35 mile 1). Now settle into your normal hilly pattern - pant, wheeze, huff and puff to get up the hill, then sprint down the other side trying to gain momentum to get up the next hill. Get passed on the uphills and pass back on the down hills. At mile 4 don't get too discouraged when the 4 mile racers turn off to go to their finish line. After all, you're almost half way. Ignore the mile splits being called out. Sure you're at 39 minutes at mile 5, but you've got a mile and half hill to climb at the end of the race. Run next to someone who has your same first name and is from the town. When the crowd yells "Go Susan!" pretend they're cheering for you. Take a few seconds to walk through the aid stations and drink some Gatorade. Okay, so it made you nauseous the first time, but now your legs are wanting to cramp. Keep pushing at mile 8 when the legs really start to bother you. Don't look for the top of the hill when you begin that last climb, you're going to be here a while. And don't look at your Garmin, you don't want to know what your pace is. Talk to your legs for the last quarter mile, tell them not to freeze up or go numb. Threaten to drag them kicking and screaming across the finish line. Don't worry about the other people passing you, just get it done. Rejoice when you see the finish time: 1:26:33. Realize you didn't run the tangents and ran 10.13 miles instead of only 10 with an average pace of 8:32. Be proud you put 100% into a race and left nothing on the table. Feel empowered as it says in Philippians 4:13(Amplified):

I have strength for all things in Christ Who empowers me [I am ready for anything and equal to anything through Him Who [a]infuses inner strength into me; I am [b]self-sufficient in Christ's sufficiency].

Smile.

VA Happy Trails Running Club Women's Half-Marathon

September 12, 2009

After I got home from my swing band gig, I laid out my running gear so that all I would have to do is wake up, get dressed and head out the door. Getting to bed at 12:30am and getting up at 5:30am is not the best race day strategy. It doesn't count that I woke up about once an hour either. The weather was cloudy and cool, not bad for a race day run. Once registered, I did the normal pre-race ritual - stand in line to use the toilets, last minute wardrobe changes, warmup jog, etc. I decided to try my race-vest hydration bladder. I was at my car when they said the race was going to start in a couple of minutes. So I jogged down to the starting line and there was no place to go, except on the front row. The men who were volunteering for this all-women race sang "Happy Trails to You." Ha - it was very off-key and they got a wonderful round of applause. Then it was time to go! I was running with the leaders and they had no idea where they were going (neither did I). They started to head out to the road and the poor guy standing there was pointing the way, only it was the wrong way! "This way!" a bunch of women shouted as they headed to finish the parking lot loop. So we had to back track a few yards. The first 1/2 mile or so was on a road and it was fast. I couldn't believe how quickly the leaders pulled ahead of everyone. Of course, I started off way too fast - but that's my normal procedure (first mile was 8:15). Finally we turned to do the trail running and I was in a group of about 5-10 women. The trails weren't as muddy as I envisioned except in the bottom of some of the steeper inclines, and they looped through the woods, which was good, because although it was cool, it was also very humid. I stayed with this group for a while, we would change positions periodically depending on the terrain. At the first aid station (2.8 miles) I kept moving and the group spread out more. This is the "Do Loop" section, complete with relics from the 50s - a Ford Fairlane and a Nash Rambler. How they got back there in the woods, who knows. This section runs down by the reservoir and then back up to the aid station in a series of up and down hills. I was able to pass a few people on these hills and felt pretty strong coming back up to the aid station. I passed a woman who was being helped by the volunteers. She had gotten stung by a bee, tried to keep running, but it must have started to affect her. I again ran through the aid station and left behind the group I was running with. Now I was alone and scared that I was going to get lost in the woods. Plus, how do you pace yourself when you've got no one breathing down your back as you're climbing hills? I went like this for a while and eventually someone caught up to me and passed me. Actually two or three women passed me on the steep hill climbs. I was about at the half-way mark and starting to feel it. On some of the steeper hills, I was pushing hard (now that I had company) and was feeling pretty light headed by the top. I would use the downhills to recover and would usually gain ground on the woman in front of me. This is when the woman in orange passed me. At least I could keep an eye on her. Finally I made it to the last section of the run, an out and back, 2.5 miles each way. Because I had water with me, I again ran by the aid station, but walked a little to take a gel(with caffeine). Dang it, if a couple more passed me. In this section, the hills were both longer and steeper, and because this was an out and back you could see the leaders coming in for their final mile or two. Those ladies couldn't have walked up any of the hills, even the steepest. I usually took my cue from whoever was in front of me. I was so happy to see the turn around even if it meant climbing up a hill. The guy directing traffic said something about the hills and I said "I'll just take the elevator up." Those were the kind of visuals I was trying to keep in my mind. As I passed the aid station, they asked, "Do you need anything?" I called out, "Yea, I need to finish this thing!" They thought that was pretty funny and cheered me on. 2 miles to go. Now I was watching those behind me head to the turn around. Finally, the last hill. Can I push it harder, oh no my calf thinks it might cramp. Slow down slightly, then hear the guy yelling "400 yds to go!" Finish line in sight - time 2:12:18. It's a done deal! Final results 4th in age group, 38th out of 188 overall. The winner obliterated the record and finished in 1:37:38. The field was much stronger this year and the weather was cooler. In 2008 only 7 runners were under 2 hrs, this year 13 runners.
The lady in orange was 3rd in my age group, I had her in sight most of the 2nd half of the race, just couldn't muster up the strength to pass her. Still thinking about fueling, hydration, and nutrition in general. I can be stronger and faster. This is a good trail race to try to conquer again and maybe be one of the sub 2hr runners.

The Run from Hades - Saturday 9/5/09

I knew it was going to be a bad run when I almost had an accident just getting to the starting point. I was going around a curve on a narrow country road when I came face to face with a speedy sports car. I had to drive my car halfway up the embankment to avoid being hit. That was the second time in a week I had a close encounter with another car. My guardian angels were working overtime, and their job was not yet done. My goal was to start at Route 50 in Clarke County by the river and run through Warren County and into Frederick County, ending at Middletown, VA where my daughter was at rehearsal and my husband could pick me up. 28-30 miles of beautiful, rolling country roads. I gave myself 5 hours. The run started off well, my pace was good and there was hardly any traffic, but this was familiar territory for me until about 8.5 miles. Then I turned towards Front Royal. At least here, the road was straight, lots of hills but straight. However the traffic was a bit more than I would have wanted and the cars were going really fast and not slowing down a bit for a lowly runner. And since the only wildlife I had been seeing were the normal cattle and horses, I decided to count roadkill instead. I was up to 5 when I thought I might become roadkill myself by a pickup truck that thinks ditches are the best place for runners. Then I turned onto Fairgrounds Road. Note to runners, if you value your life do not run on Fairgrounds Road. I felt like I was running on a major highway. Problem is, no shoulder and lots of uphill climbing. You couldn't see if there was a car cresting the hill, and they certainly couldn't see you. So my strategy here became, run/jump-in-ditch/run/jump-in-ditch. It was a short stretch of road, but seemed to take forever. Finally, I turned onto a much less traveled road and continued climbing hills. The views were lovely, and I passed the half-marathon mark at about 2hrs15min. I made it out to the highway, crossed it and continued on towards Middletown by way of Reliance Road. Now it was mid afternoon and the sun was beating down on me. Reliance Road continued to climb up, up, up, and I was drinking, drinking, drinking and still having to avoid traffic on another heavily traveled road with very little shoulder. At mile 17, I ran out of water. Okay, no biggie, the town of Reliance is a couple of miles ahead. Surely, they have a general store. So I run for 2 more miles uphill in the sun. Where is that town? Every house I go by, I look to see if someone is sitting on the porch. Would I be so bold as to ask for a little bit of water? But nobody was in their yard. Finally, I think I'm in the middle of Reliance. It's one of those town where the entering/leaving sign is one and the same. There is a church and they are having a yard party at 4pm with homemade icecream, food and drinks - but that's next week! I'm a week early! I had mapped out a two or three mile spur at this point which would get my mileage closer to 30 miles. I decide that to avoid heat exhaustion, I probably better keep moving on the main road. I take to walking up some of the steeper hills. It was one of the few times I would have jumped into the truck if my husband had come by to check on me. But then I said, "No! I'm the Warrior Princess. This is how I do battle! Relentless forward progress. Get moving soldier!" I remember I have a VESPA supplement in my pack. It is based in orange juice. I drink it, it's only a couple of ounces but it wets my mouth some, and gives me the energy to run again. Finally at mile 22 I reach the Route 81 intersection with a gas station and water! I refuel and continue on into Middletown. I'm at about mile 23, feeling better and still have time to spare so I opt for my Belle Grove loop and hope to make at least marathon distance. Finally I'm back in town with 27 miles under my belt. But where is my ride? I had turned my cell phone off because it hadn't charged properly. Sure enough, they were looking for me, thinking I might be down on the side of the road. So I head back down Reliance Road and get another mile in before we hook up. I'm crusted with salt from head to toe. Even my eyelashes have salt in them. But I had done it - 28 miles in about 5 hrs under not the best circumstances. What did I gain? Confidence. Confidence comes from facing a challenge and pushing yourself when obstacles threaten to defeat you from your goals. It comes from falling down, but still getting up and moving forward. It comes from believing that you can and will overcome and finishing knowing you did your best. You may not finish in the time you wanted, there may be pain or discomfort, and you may have been short of your goal but because you persevered, you have the confidence to brush yourself off and do it again.

Dahlgren Rail Trail 50K

We arrived at Westmoreland State Park, Thursday evening. As we drove through the campground to pick our site, there sat my brother in front of their cabin. We knew they were going to be here, but finding them so quickly was an added bonus. Our site was just around the bend. This is a beautiful campground and would highly recommend it. After a good night’s sleep Thursday, we wondered around the trails. One trail led down to the Potomac River, and there was an olympic-size swimming pool, picnic area, boat rentals and fishing. Another trail led down to the fossil beach, and you could go swimming in the river here. Between hiking the trails and going down to the fossil beach I got in 6 miles plus some river swimming. Saturday night was campfire night, roasting hotdogs and marshmallows and catching up with my brother and his family. I tried not to think about the race too much, but finally had to excuse myself to get everything in order for the next day. I slept terrible. This was the night I could hear every single noise in the campground, the baby crying, the dog barking. Mosquitos were buzzing around my head but it was too warm to hunker under covers. 4 a.m. came early. I was a little worried because we had actually not driven to the race site, did not have exact directions and did not know how long it would take to get there. But all was good and my husband dropped me off with 7 minutes to spare before the pre-race meeting and ½ hour before the start of the race. Now here I did a silly thing. I was going to call him when I got done so I put my cell phone in my drop bag. I wanted my bag out on the course in case I needed something out of it. I have my own special gels, electrolytes, etc. But then, after the bags were gone I asked when they would be back at the finish line and realized it wouldn’t be until around 2:30(the official end of the race), which meant I would have to hang around even if I finished early. The pre-race meeting was quick. He described the course and how we would actually get down to the trail, but I wasn’t paying attention – I figured someone would be in front of me leading the way. I don’t usually eat before the start of a race – I took my Vespa, and filled my bottles with Ultima, and took an S-cap. Finally we line up and were off. My husband is yelling “Go warrior princess!”

The leaders start off fast, and I’m right behind them, but as we go down into the woods and make all these turns we’re supposed to make, suddenly they are out of sight and there’s no one in front of me. I get to an intersection and think “Which way did he say to go?” Fortunately, there were people coming up behind me and a guy yelled out “Go right!” With that we made it out to the road and down to the trail. This is where it got fun. My strategy was to try to maintain a 9:00min to 9:30min pace for as long as possible. I was in a group of about 5 runners and they were maintaining a steady pace, so I decided to stick with them as long as possible. The ground was lumpy and soft. Railroad ties were still stuck in the ground, sometimes jutting out at weird angles. You would get close to one side of the trail to try and avoid an obstacle and get whacked by a raspberry bush. I pretty much followed the path the person in front of me was taking. In this manner we went about 4 miles out to the end, then turned around and went back over that same lumpy ground. Between the group, we changed leads several times. Another woman caught up and joined the pack, then one eventually dropped back. At that point, I was the 4th woman. We ran by the spot where we got on the trail, and were now into new territory. It was “better” but not by much. Some stretches were thick with rocks. They grab at your feet and tried to twist your ankles. Some of it was packed dirt (I liked that best) and you could pick up the pace a little. Eventually, the pack started to break up, and I was at the end of it, seeing them get further in the distance. I was essentially running alone now. At about mile 13 the trail took a diversion and went onto a single track trail up a steep little hill. Oh, this is what I’m used to. But it only lasted for a minute and then it was back to lumps, railroad ties, and rocks. I passed the ½ marathon mark at about 2:08. I was still right where I wanted to be. Then, at the half way point of the race, this group of runners comes from behind me and passes me. Where’d they come from? Oh well, I slipped into 5th woman at that point and so my goal then was to not let anyone else pass me. Finally I made it to the turnaround point at about mile 19 ½. I had them fill my bottles with coke and gatorade. Caffeine and sugar – here we go! Now I could see who was behind me. I tried to give some encouraging “Great job. Way to go!”

Eventually, I found myself alone again. I passed one person, cruised into the aide station, filled up and kept going. My legs were on the edge of cramping. I started taking the s-caps, one per hour, then increased it to two per hour. I never walked, except at the aide stations, and up the steep hill with the single track trail. I hit the marathon mark at about 4:30. Five more miles, 4 more miles, keep moving forward – watch your form. The last aide station was at 3.5 miles out. “That’s just a little more than a 5k. I can do that!” I keep listening for footsteps behind me, but I’m all alone on the trail. Just keep moving forward. Finally, I see two gentlemen directing me up to the road and final stretch. I yell to them, “I’m so happy to see you, I could kiss you!” They brightens them up and then I throw each of them a kiss as I climb up the embankment and onto the road. The road isn’t closed at this point and I’m running on the shoulder. There are people trying to slow the traffic down, but some of the cars don’t want to move over very much. Then I get onto that last windy trail section with all the turns and no one to follow! Fortunately, I don’t get lost and am up in the meadow running toward the finish line and hoping my legs won’t seize up on me. I cross the finish line. I know if I stop I’ll cramp up, so I grab my finisher’s cap on the run, and the guy hands me a water bottle. Finally, I manage to get my legs to calm down. My final time was 5:35:29. , 5th woman and 17th overall (out of 53 finishers). I’m happy with the time, but I know I can do better. I need to maintain my pace over the long run, and figure out my electrolyte balance. I ate two gels, and one Vespa on the trail. I grabbed a few m&m’s, and other junk at the aide stations and mostly had them fill my bottles with Gatorade. I never really felt like I hit the wall, or bonked, but I really slowed down, especially in those last five miles. I enjoyed talking with the other finishers as they came in. One guy was crazy. He said he had his will all made out, was leaving everything to his brother, and was signing up for this really hard 100 mile race. He also said he almost passed out once on the trail but didn’t slow down. He likes to live on the edge. So I gave him the name of a race where since 1986 only 8 people have actually finished the race. “Where do I sign up?” he asked. My bag finally showed up and I could call my husband. They were enjoying George Washington’s birthplace while I was racing.

Saturday afternoon, I got two more miles while walking back down to the fossil beach for another swim. I was wearing sandals and had a pretty blood blister. A little stick flew up into my foot and ripped the blister open. Yucky mess. Then, Sunday, I did a 6 mile hike/trail run for recovery. My legs felt amazingly well. Tired, but not that sore. I did bring the mini-trampoline and bounced on it, and I think that helped too.

There were no great epiphanies during this race. I stretched myself, but not to the point of breaking. I can feel myself getting stronger, but can also feel where I’ve let myself slack (especially when it comes to diet). So I cross this finish line, and get ready for the next start line. The Warrior Princess has more to do before she’s through.

Friends of the W&OD 10K Race Report

Saturday August 1, 2009

It was the first day of August and it was going to be a hot one. The race was at 6:30 pm. The good thing about evening races is that you get to sleep in. The bad thing is, figuring out, how much and when to eat before the race. After a little snafu with getting my race packet because I was the last person to register online (it was filed by bib number, not alphabetically), I began my warm up and pre-race necessities(standing in the long line waiting for a porta-potty). The race was being held on the bike trail and with over 300 people registered to run, you can imagine how jam-packed we were. I tried to squeeze in a spot and was pretty far back from the starting line. I didn’t even know the race had started until the people in front of me began inching forward. 20 seconds to cross the line (glad this was chipped time) and then I started to try to weave my way through people. Finally the crowd started to spread out. By this time, I’m sure the temperature was approaching 90. The sun was right in our faces for the first half of the race. Mile one was fast, on a slight downhill incline (7:24), After another ½ mile we took a little spur off into a neighborhood. This had the only real hill in the whole course, and I was glad. Once back on the trail, I tried to concentrate on form, but by mile two (15:24) I had already slowed considerably. I was also beginning to feel the weight of food eaten earlier in the day. When we passed mile 3 (23:15), I thought the turn around would be at the 5k mark, but we kept going, and finally turned around right where a road crossed. Now I knew the reason for the spur, so we wouldn’t have to cross any streets. This was a water stop and I grabbed a cup and threw the water on me. At mile four (31:39), I was happy to see that I had beat my time in the last four mile race. It was then I realized that I might actually be able to get a new PR. The problem was it was so hot! My clothes were drenched with sweat. Sweat was running down my legs and into my shoes. Suddenly, I had a new problem. My bowels started acting up and I had to go to the bathroom bad. I started looking around, seeing if there was a place on the trail where I could duck off. I finally passed mile five(40:29). Focus on the finish, I told myself, then you can take care of business. Just 1.2 miles to go. I concentrated on trying to pass the person in front of me on the trail. Everyone was slowing down. I think I got by 3 guys when finally the finish line came into view. Sprint across the mat – official chip time 50:41, a new PR by 16 seconds! I’m inching down towards breaking the 50 minute barrier. Give me 10 degrees cooler, and 10 less pounds and I’ll have it. I liked the race, and I’ll probably do it again – some people were complaining about the fact that there was no Gatorade. One person was transported to the hospital in an ambulance, probably due to the heat. I wish they had 5 year age group awards instead of 10. I would have placed in the 45-49 age group. I came in 6th in my age group, 20th out of 157 women, and 80th out of 328 total runners.
Now to get ready for the 50K next weekend!

Summer Solstice Run

At 4:20 am, I felt my husband touch my arm. I don't know if he was asleep or awake, but the touch was enough to wake me up. Gotta get moving! The sun will be rising soon. Friday night I had packed my mule pack with all the essential gear I thought I would need: Food, first aid kit, parachute cord, emergency rain ponchos, emergency blanket, large trash bag (for emergency shelter), water purifier, extra socks, headlamp, knife, toilet paper!, etc. Once I fill the hydration bladder with water, the pack weighs about 10 pounds. Now I just had to get dressed and prepare my body for the longest day run - body glide in all potentially chafing areas, aquaphor on the feet, shorts, tank, combat vest (after all I am the Warrior Princess!) hat or headband, knee pads, weightlifting gloves(hand protection), Injinji toe socks, shoes. I'm ready and it's 5:00am and I'm already late since it's going to take about 2 hrs to get to my starting point - Swift Gap near Elkton, VA. Finally, at 7:30am, I'm at the trail head and ready to start moving south. I meet my first through hiker of the day (those going from South to North on the 2175 mile Appalachian Trail) and he points me in the right direction. The trail begins ascending immediately, but it isn't very technical(rocky) and I'm able to start running right away. It's more of a run/power hike, run until it's too steep then power hike, trying to keep the heart rate up and the pace steady. It's cloudy, hot and muggy - feels like a storm is brewing. The most eventful thing that occurred in the first hour was the black bear that crossed my path! In the second hour, as I was descending and picking up the pace pretty good, one side of the chest strap on my back pack breaks. I tried running for a few minutes and realized that it had to be fixed somehow. So using parachute cord, and my knife, I managed to jury rig it. My husband would be proud. Back on the trail, I pick up the pace to make up for lost time. Now I'm descending down some slippery rocks and sure enough my feet go out from under me and I land on my rear end, my right arm going backward and cracking my elbow on a rock. So much for the knee pads. Well, it was just an elbow, so even if it's broken, I can still run, right? I get up and start running again, and the pain starts to lesson. However, I look over at it and there's blood running down my arm. Another unscheduled stop. Pull out the first aid kit, clean the wound, and put a bandaid on the cut. Time to start moving again. It's starting to sprinkle which feels good, because with every ridge I climb I get soaked with sweat. My mantra is - if you're hiking up hill, make sure you drink. The tops of the ridges were wonderfully breezy, but when you descended into the hollows the air became close. At about 9:30, the rain started to come down. It quickly turned into a full blown storm, with the rain coming in great sheets. I stopped, put my emergency rain poncho on, and kept moving. There was really no place to take shelter and so the only thing to do was to push on. It poured and poured. I thought to myself, "At least it's not thundering and lightening." As if on cue - boom! the first clap of thunder. I just had to laugh and keep going. The storm lasted up one ridge and down the other side, then began to slack off. I pulled the emergency poncho off, stuffed it away and kept going, sloshing through puddles of water. Soon the sun came out, and things began to dry off. There were some beautiful views on the tops of the ridges and one mile began to turn into another. At times the trail was overgrown, the underbrush encroaching on the path. At other times, the forest was mature and the path strewn with soft pine needles. I encountered two snakes along the way, a black snake that took his time crossing the trail, and a big copperhead that was curled up under a log next to the trail. At mile 17 I was near the Loft Campground. I took a quick sidetrip to the campstore and bought a Pepsi (sugar & caffeine, yes!). I tried to convince the store clerk that I was going to Waynesboro. "You'll never make it." he said - 26 more miles. At that point I probably had 8hrs of daylight left. "Sure I will," I insisted. Then he said, "Even in the army they give you 10 minutes break." So I remarked, "Well, this is my break. I'm going to drink this Pepsi and then get moving." I pushed on. At mile 24, I came out on the ledge where this picture was taken. This is the Warrior Princess in all her glory. This is also where I ran out of water. It was midafternoon and hot. I was a little concerned, but I knew that somewhere along the way there would be a shelter with a spring. It happened to be a mile away. These shelters are usually about a 1/4 mile down the side of the mountain, and the springs can be hit or miss. Luckily, this one was trickling out at a nice pace, and the water was cold and refreshing. Since I was getting the water straight from the source, I didn't treat it, just drank it up. That task done, I chatted with the through hikers who were done for the day, and then moved on. From mile 25 to 30, it seemed the uphills were getting longer and longer and the downhills shorter and shorter. At mile 31, I had to make a decision. My cellphone was running low on batteries and reception was in and out. To rendezvous with my husband who was picking me up, he had to know where I was. The mile marker sign showed a gap about 6 miles away. If I stopped there it would be a 12 hour day. With the drive home being close to 3 hrs, I thought that would probably be a good stopping place. I managed to get a signal, called him (got his voice mail) and told him the location of the pickup point and what time I would be there. I hoped he got the message because my cell phone battery was almost gone. Now that I knew how much farther I had, I tried to pick up the pace a bit. Finally, there were some longer stretches of downhill. I passed some people setting up camp along a ridge. I paused briefly at an overlook, took a few pictures and then finished my last descent and climb up to Jarmin Gap. The total mileage ended up being 36.5 miles in about 12 hours. We traveled on the parkway on our way back to get my car. An ambulance was parked at the overlook where I had just been, and it looked like they were going on the trail to rescue someone who had been injured. Then a little further down the road, a momma bear and her 3 cubs crossed the road in front of our car. Unfortunately, I couldn't get my camera out in time to take a picture. We stopped one last time to take a picture of the sunset over the mountains. The Summer Solstice Run was at its end.

For more photos go to:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2026827&id=1443655108&l=53b7880f15

Run Under the Stars 10 Hour Endurance Run

As I stood at the starting line for the race, I realized that it was my two year anniversary from the day I walked into the Weight Watchers meeting weighing 274 pounds. Now I was standing on a horse track, getting ready to run for 10 hours straight. The journey to this point has had many peaks and valleys, and like the many mountain trails I run on, there have been lots of obstacles to trip me up along the way. Most of these are mental - self doubt, stress, and negative thought patterns that create self limits. Some were physical - a sickness followed by a lingering cough that would not go away. But I was here now, to challenge myself to the limit and to have fun doing it. Did I have a race strategy? Sort of. Start on the fast side and rack up as many miles as possible in the first half of the race, crash and burn, and then hang on to the final whistle. I'm standing on the toe line, trying to make small talk. One of the relay team members is standing there, looking like an Olympiad compared to me. "What's your pace? 8, 7, 6 minutes?" Finally I got it out of him - 6:40s. Whew, I'd see him every time he lapped me! (It was a 1/2 mile loop). His team of five went on to log about 85 miles! That's an average of about a 7 min/mile pace. As we take off, I find myself running next to a pleasant fellow who was taking a pretty good pace. I felt good, and the pace didn't seem that hard, so I ran with him for a while. We were talking and clipping along at a little less than 9min miles. After a while, he stopped to take a walking break and feeling good, I decided to keep going (you know my strategy...) Perhaps, I should have ran with him the whole time (he ended up winning the race with 58 miles logged). I hit the 10k mark at about 54min, and decided to drop the pace a little bit. My mistake in these first few miles was hydration - I didn't drink enough. I was sweating a lot too. But I was still feeling good. Now I was running on my own. I would wave at Carol, a lady I met before the race, as I passed her and kept going. The guy I started the race would catch up to me, he said right before his walking break. So for a while we were pretty even. I passed the half-marathon mark (13.1 miles) at about 2 hours, just as it was time to change directions! Okay, time to slow down a little more. For some reason, the direction change threw my stride off a bit. Then at about mile 16, the first leg cramp hit. I walked briefly and was able to loosen it up, then realized how far behind I was on drinking my water/electrolytes. Drink, drink, drink and keep running. Stopping more to walk and drink. I hit the 20 mile mark at 3 hrs 20minutes and the marathon mark at 4hrs 45min. My marathon goal time is a sub 4 hour, so this gave me an idea of what I needed to work on for that(hydrating early for one). The leg cramps were coming more regularly and I had to take a lot of walking breaks now. I tried not to make them more than a quarter or half of the loop. My next goal was the 30 mile mark which I hit at 5 hrs 35 min. At this point there was still a chance to make 50 miles. From 30 to 40 miles my pace slowed even more, the leg cramps at times debilitating. I would stop and stretch them. An older gentlemen gave me some S!Caps that helped and cranberry supplements. He said I started too fast(didn't bother to tell him that was the strategy..he was a veteran at ultras, I walked with him for a while too). I fueled mostly with gels and Vespa(it works great). Energy wise I felt great, I could have run if my leg would only stop cramping. During this 10 miles, I walked with Carol and her friend Angela for a while. Once I sat down for a brief second at our camper (which was conveniently located right by the track) and let my husband, who happened to be awake at that moment, refill my bottles. Carol came by at that time and yelled "Get your butt up, and get back out here!" I yelled back, "I'm coming, I'm coming." I did a few loops with a gentleman from VA. He was doing a 2/1 run walk interval. He asked me what my intervals were. I said "I run until my leg cramps up, and then I walk until it loosens up." I didn't like the 2/1, just when you got going you stopped, just when you got in a groove walking, you had to start running again! I finally let him go on. Somewhere in the middle of the night, I discovered Coke! Fill my water bottle with coke please! It really perked me up. The 30s slowly ticked off. When I walked, this one girl kept lapping me, one or two times. Then she would walk with her sister and I would lap her. But I knew that somewhere in there, she had passed my mileage count. I did stop and walk with her and her sister for a while. Her sister had been injured and had opted for walking the race. At 8 hours, I finally hit the 40 mile mark. I knew at that point that it would be virtually impossible to get to 50 miles. Now, it was 1 mile at a time. This is when I entered the "zone." I put my head down and started to run. The leg cramps were coming less often and not as severe, so I was back to walking less and running more. I focused on the spot 3 feet in front of me, and just kept moving forward. Aside from the calf cramps, the legs felt better when running than when walking. 41, 42, can I make 43? 44, 45, is it over yet - keep moving, keep going forward. I passed the man that gave me the S!caps "Go get them, Tiger!" Too tired to comment back, 46, 47, could I make 48 - yes at a 11:45 pace! 12 minutes to go, there's got to be at least one lap left in me. I passed the girl that had lapped me "Did you get 50?" I asked. She had. "Looks like 48.5 for me." and I pushed toward the finish line. I crossed it with a 5 min and 30 seconds to go. I ran past the camper and my husband was standing out front, "5 minutes, can I do one more?" And then I took off, pushing with all my might. A guy ran by me. "Last lap," he said. Last curve, the finish line is in sight. Am I going to do it? Yes! One minute to spare! I ran the last mile in 11:15! 49 miles total! I raised my hands in victory. The guy who crossed right before me gave me a high five. Then I promptly cramped up (it was the big one, Ethel) and gave a yell! Three people ran over to me and held me up. My husband ran over and began to massage my calf. Finally it loosened up enough so I could walk around and work it the rest of the way out. I was puttering around, and realized that they were doing the awards ceremony. I knew the one girl had beaten me. Had anybody else? They announced the 3rd place female with a mileage count of 46. Is it really true? I'm second place? As I accepted the trophy, I realized that this was not just about me. It was about my wonderful supportive family who lets me run for hours on end, without complaint that I'm gone or that the house is messy. And it's about my incredible Weight Watcher friends and runners who encourage me, hold me accountable and challenge me with their own victories and goals, and about friends who pray for me, and encourage me with their "Congrats! Way to go! Awesome." Finally, it's about my faith, and the God who sustains me and who has imprinted on my heart, "Nothing is impossible, with God." Nothing is impossible. I stand on the shore of a vast sea, my goals and dreams a shadow on the distant shore. I can hesitate, I can think that they are too lofty and too far away to attain. Or I can believe in the human spirit, and in my God who strengthens me. I take a deep breath and plunge in.