ATY Six Day 2021 - 2022
December 28, 2021 - January 3, 2022
Name calling
There is a lot of name calling in our world especially in the ultra world. Now regulars, people who don’t run like us call us the big one, crazy. They seem to always have a look on their face when they say it and that look is not good. Sometimes I don’t tell people what I ran because I just don’t want that look and name called to me…crazy. Now a psychologist at one point in my educational career told me that crazy is an actual diagnosis. So Regulars out there stop calling us crazy. We can call ourselves cray cray all the time as we laugh and giggle and use the term, but not you other people. This is because we are using it in a teasing way called bonding teasing versus degrading or mean teasing. In fact some of us prefer to be called eccentric versus crazy.
During this race I started getting called all sorts of names:
Smiling warrior, energizer bunny, impressive, inspirational, incredible, awesome
Who you calling names?
I do like the smiling warrior moniker.
I also appreciate a good nickname that is in good fun, especially without the scary cray cray face. These nicknames are bonding and supporting and good for bringing people together and building each other up. Too much of our world is about tearing one another down.
People in power should mind themselves as the youth of society is watching. When people in power do things, others are watching so I hope our leaders can learn how to work together and not call each other names as our kids are emulating their behavior and this negative energy is not helpful for our society.
Build people up, do not tear them down.
Crazy is a diagnosis.
Careful how it is used.
Goals
Big numbers, get big numbers, Have fun, laugh a lot
I met two of the three goals and some would say I met all three
Half, 2:30
Full, 5:22
50 miles, 11:20
100 miles, 29:31
Slower than usual and the rain and mud might have had something to do with that
Mud mud mud
Mud and rain on the first day really made you work for your miles.
I got into the zone and ran a lot with little walk breaks while listening to a Jodi Picoult book, the entire book on day one. Great story about the pandemic.
Lots of people missing this ATY probably due to the pandemic and omicron
Rv, sweet bed and storage. This year I got the special bed and all the storage I needed which is good because everything I brought was used. Sharing the RV with Amy and Jenny and we hardly end up there at the same time. Mostly just miss each other going in and out. It is an older RV and everything works except for charging. The plug ins don’t work so charging phone and charging brick charger in the warming tent.
Emailed RV place for push button generator, and they delivered. I could just see myself later in the race hurting myself with a ripcord generator.
Van gave me rain skirt, works great as there are always parts of the day that you need an extra layer and putting on pants takes too long.
Eating a lot as usual because these races are just as much an eating contest as a running contest.
One blister at 100 miles, drained it, moving on
Retape toes now, bigger shoes, 3 pm on second day, this tape lasts till day six and no tape needed
Poured rain last night, On and off rain all day and night, Used new raincoat and it works great, Weather forecast quite off
Daily mileage 81, 59, 51, 50, 42, 33
200 miles at 76 hours
300 miles at 5 days, 7 hours
Eating a lot, Laughing a lot, Rain forecast way off, Foot hurts something awful on day 5, I think I may have injured myself
One hour sleep day two
Three hours of sleep on day three
1-2 hours night of day three, fitfull bc of late cup of coffee
Day four got a nap of a couple hours
Day five, tried to sleep, no heat, I think propane tank is out
Due to lack of sleep not sure what happened as far as sleep goes after that…
Chick pea sandwiches are da bombs. Momma Curry and the whole ATY team feeds us well with lots of plant based option. What they can do with lentils is amazing.
Morning of day four thought I lost it and ruined my race only to find out I still managed to get 50 miles even with a lot of down time during the night
Torential short rain storm after midnight, soaked all my warm clothes
Used warming tent to get them dry
Wind all of day five, Chapped lips, Wearing face mask coated with Vaseline to protect lips
Major freak out on day five…I thought it was day four, oh hell no, damn that scared me
Walking with Mikey And Van, Nikki and Joe and Rick, Amy, Jenny, Deb, Marie
All good conversations , Socialization is the name of the game
Congratulations to Mikey, Van, and Marie for getting big mileage, 600, 500 and 400
Congratulations Jenny and Deb for placing in the 72 hour race, your first time out
Congratulations Rickey, ever closer to that 1000 mile jacket
Congratulations Amy on the win and another 400+ six day
Congratulations Rachel on second in the 48 hour race
A M A Z I N G !
My friends are amazing!
Stream on consciousness or unconsciousness continues…
Taking more frequent breaks otherwise very painful feet, two laps, then sit down with feet up, two laps, then sit down with feet up and repeat
One time I went 3-4 laps, major melt down but after sitting with feet up for ten minutes back to normal or what we call normal, Dreading the impending cold of the night
Said goodbye to Jenny and Deb, two rockstars in the 72 hour race
We had a lot of laps together and a lot of laughs
Where’s my shoelace
Number 2, number 2, number 2
Finish your sentence, or not, teehee
Note to self, My patience, what little I have, goes away when there is significant loss of sleep
Using all the socks I brought, especially the toe socks
Cut out shoes working well on day 5
Sore top of left foot, swollen
Due to walking so much
After the race this foot is very painful, lots of icing and the swelling won’t come down, ouch
6 days are hard. Anything over 300 miles is good. I’m three for three in that department, over 300 in all three of my 6 days. Last year at the end of this race I said, hell yes, I’m going do another six day again. This year. Not sure. I don’t want to do damage that takes me away from running. So have to be careful with six days as they are good damagers.
ATY is a special place. Where I completed my first 100 and where I have met so many wonderful people over the years. Celebrating New Years is a special time at ATY. If you haven’t been here you should check it out. People say flat is easy. And then they learn that multidays are hard even on a flat and easy course.
