Save the Daylight Ultra

November 2-3, 2018
24 hour event

Race morning! Finally here! I'd been getting more and more nervous as the day got closer. I took off Thursday to get everything in order. I got my bottles of caffieneted Tailwind mixed and two peanut butter and jelly sandwiches made. I got everything but the cooler packed in the car. Friday morning, I got up around 5:45, had a cup of coffee, got my son out of bed, then got myself ready. Aidan headed off to school and I headed out to Walgreens for ice and then Starbucks for my free venti iced coconut milk latte, which I was going to save in my cooler for later. As I made my way from Walgreens to Starbucks, I realized I had left my sandwiches in the fridge! :( It was already after 7am. I didn't want to drive the 3 miles back home, with the early morning traffic. And, once I left Starbucks, the interstate entrance was backed up, so I had to drive through town to get to the next entrance, south. Once I got to my River Road exit, i got stuck behind a bunch of cars heading my way. At this point, I was happy I hadn't gone back home for the Sandwiches. I wanted to be at the race venue an hour early to get checked in and set up. I would text Kevin later, to bring my food. Once I finally got to Anne Dever park, I got checked in, then went to work putting up my tailgate tent, setting out my table and getting the rest of my gear set up. About 5 minutes before the race start, I headed over to the pavillion. Everyone else was signed up and running the 48 hour event. Justin announced my birthday and let everyone know I "may" join them for the full 48 hours, if I felt up to it the next day. :) At 9 am, we were off!

Got my car and small aid station set up. Ready to get started!

First loop, I ran with a guy who has run many long ultras and who hadn't trained much for this event, but was using his girlfriends race entry. It was nice to have someone to chat with for the first loop. He told me some stories about his ultras, keeping my mind off of the growing temperature. When we got to the bridge (which I planned to walk each time) he went ahead. The first 4 miles were great. Kept the pace in the low to mid 11:00 min mile range. During mile 8, I had a refill stop at the main aid station and a quick drink of my iced coffee at my tent. This was my first longer mile (15:02).

As the heat rose, my pace slowed to the 13 min mile range. I was walking more as I was feeling overheated. I would walk a song, then run a song. This seemed to work well. Walking a little longer helped me feel like I had "cooled" down a bit. Mile 17 was another longer one (22:12). A runner had told me there was a turtle on the trail near the mile 3 marker. Sure enough, the little guy was there. When I got to my tent, I grabbed my phone from the car, then headed back out. When I got the the turtle (he was still there!) I tried to get a photo but discovered my phone had shut down! Must have gotten hot in the car. So, I stood there waiting for it to re start. I had all day and night, after all. :) The turtle hung out, too. Only moving a foot or so, until I was able to get a photo of him. He was not shy, so I got  a little closer for a selfie.

Another long stop at the aid station during mile 24, and then the discovery of my tail gate blown over and upside down, made for a 31 minute mile. It was hard to turn that thing over by myself, but I managed it. Then lowered the top, in hopes it wouldn't blow over again. The frame was a little damaged, but it would do the job of providing some shade when I needed it. I also decided to sit for a few minutes and enjoy a few sips of my iced coffee. I also sent a text to my husband, asking him to bring my sandwiches and a few other things. He sent me a text back saying they had left already. :( Just after mile 27, I stopped at my car again, to change out my top. I also noticed my Garmin battery getting low. I really wanted it to last for a couple more hours! Just after mile 30, when I was coming back into the main loop, I saw my husband and Aidan waiting for me. I stopped to get a hug, then told them I would meet them at my car, after I checked in. Just as I got to the car, it started to rain. They tried to help me fix my tent, but as they worked on it, the rain started coming down hard. They had said they would walk a loop with me, so we headed out. About a half mile down the path, I told them to go ahead and go back to the car and take off. They were soaked and didn't look very happy. Plus, I just wanted to run and get through the loop faster! By the first mile of this rainy loop, the trail was flooded and my shoes and socks were soaked. I got to the water stop mid way, to fill up my bottle, then decided to hang a bit, when the rain started down even harder. Finally, I just left the tent, not wanting to stand there if it was only going to get worse. As I came in from this lap, I stopped at the aid station, where I waited fro them to make me a sandwich, took a long time! Then, when I got to my car, I climbed into the front seat to get out of the rain a bit and hook up my garmin to charge. I had brought my extra, older Garmin to wear, while my main one was charging. When I pulled the older one out, I discovered that one strap was broken off! WTH! So, I sat in the car for a while, checking to see how fast the Garmin was charging. Finally, I just decided to head out with the old one, and just hold it for a lap or two. There was just a sprinkle now. I wanted to take advantage of the cooler temps. Details from first batch on Garmin- 33.09 miles, moving time:7:49, total time: 9:04

As I headed out, I realized quickly that I forgot to put my visor back on, which also had my music. And, I didn't have a wash cloth. When I got to the bridge, I looked at the watch, noticing the numbers looked odd. It was set to swim mode! I decided to just turn it off. So, no garmin record of this loop. Though, it was probably one of my faster for the day because as I realized soon, it was getting dark and I didn't have my light either! What a lap of mistakes. I hustled through the lap. Darkness was apon us fast. About a quarter of a mile from the end of the loop, I came up to a couple of runners, who did have lights. They were walking, so I walked behind them, taking advantage of the lighted path. As I got back to my car, Wendy was there to run with me! Miles: 3.3, no time record

Before leaving the car with Wendy, I put on my recharged Garmin, changed my skirt, to a dry one, got my head light and grabbed one of the garbage bags she had brought for me, tying it onto my water belt. It was great having Wendy out there with me. We chatted most of the way. Still a lot of walking, but some good running in there, also. The trail had already started to drain. Only a few bigger puddles left, that we easily got around. When we got back to the car, I decided to change my shoes and socks. That was enough running in wet socks! After our 3rd loop, we stopped at the main aid stop to get sandwiches. I was hungry again. Granted, it had been a few hours since my last sandwich. They were making grilled cheese, so I requested one on gluten free bread. After sitting for a while, I looked over at the grill and noticed only one sandwich on the grill. Not sure if it was because mine was gluten free, but I couldn't understand why they didn't make Wendy's at the same time! So, we were there for a while. Finally we got our sandwiches, then headed out for our last lap together. We finished 4 laps together, just before midnight. I was tired, deciding it was a good time to take a break. I thanked Wendy for coming out and keeping me company. It was wonderful to have her there. I was a bit disappointed that I wasn't able to hit my goal of 100K before midnight, but I did finish just under 50 miles before midnight. A huge milestone for me! Miles: 13.27. Time: 3:54. Moving time: 3:21

Once Wendy left, I got my little back of the car bed ready, then climbed in. It took a few tries getting myself up and in there! It felt wonderful to stretch out my legs. I set my alarm, then put on my eye mask and ear plugs. It wasn't a very restful sleep. My mind was still working like crazy, but, I was able to rest my body, which was a big help. I probably dozed here and there, finally getting up just before the alarm went off at 3:15. I had to walk to the bathroom, which was on the other side of the loop from me. Added distance that didn't count! It needed to be done. Speaking of the bathroom. I only used it twice yesterday! Not sure that's a good thing. Probably was a bit dehydrated. Once I got back to the car, I grabbed all my gear. My plan was to walk a loop or two, to ease back into it. I had just 4 loops left, to get to my goal. I decided to listen to a couple of Run This World podcasts, while walking.

Since it was only around 4am, it was still very dark. I saw a couple of other runner/walkers out there, but otherwise it was very quiet. Half way through the loop, I realized my head light was not very bright, when I got back from that loop, I stopped to change the batteries. Not sure what happened to the light, but new batteries didn't help. So, I got out my extra lights, which clip to my shoes. I ended up holding one, and saving one in my pocket, just in case the battery wasn't charged enough. Another slow loop and podcast down. As I came in from this loop, a volunteer was making eggs, bacon and potatoes. I could go for that! So, once again, I sat there waiting for some food. After a few minutes, the potatoes came out. Mixed with peppers. Yuck! I said I would wait on the eggs. I munched on a couple of slices of bacon while I waited. The guy assured me they would be ready in a couple of minutes. 5 minutes later, I look over and they are still clear and uncooked! I told him I needed to get going and would check after the next loop. Sigh. With just two loops left, I decided to get music and then try and run again. The first steps where hard! But, once I got moving, I felt alright. I did feel that blisters were forming on my feet. I had a very raw spot on my right pinky toe and I could feel another raw spot on the ball of my left foot. On my last loop, I was able to put away the lights. I got to chat with Kathleen, who has run the Keys 100 a few times. She is amazing! Then, I saw Juan heading towards me, about half a mile from the finish. He turned around and kept me company for my little bit, taking some photos too. As soon as I saw the finish line, I was so happy! I crossed the finish, with a little over an hour left in the 24 hour event. I had decided hours ago that I would not continue on, to try and make a hundred miles. There was no way I had another 30 plus miles in me. Maybe if the blisters had not formed and I had made my 100K before midnight goal. Miles: 13.12. Time:4:19. Moving time:3:52

Heading to the finish mat.

I did it! 100K!!

Total miles: 62.7
Justin asked me if I was happy with this. If I was satisfied. Yes, I wish I could have gone for a 100. I just didn't have it in me on this day. I WAS happy with finishing 100K. It's amazing to me that I was able to cover twice the distance I have ever run before. Do I have regrets about how the day panned out, yes. But, I reached the goal that I gave myself back in January. I'm proud of myself. :)

If I do another (which I am already thinking about!) these are things I would do differently:
1. Bring a lot of my own food. Sandwiches, bananas, pickles, lara bars.
2. Make my way through the aid station faster, which wouldn't be a problem if I have my own nutrition.
3. More walking in training. My feet hurt the most, when I was walking. Instead of back to back long run days, I'd mostly walk on the second day, since I'd be walking a lot during the event.
4. Be better prepared for the weather. I knew it was going to rain. I brought extra shoes, socks clothing. But I didn't bring a poncho! That would have been of great use.