Mountain Lakes 100
September 22, 2018
A Fall Beauty
Remember to train for elevation if the race is mostly between 4000 and 6000 feet
Food during race, just trying to reflect on what made me not want to eat...and gag most of the race...maybe it was elevation, maybe it was sensitive stomach, maybe I just don’t know, gotta dial this in at some point.
Fig bar, Pbj, half, Gels 5 salted carmel, Strawberry chews, made me throw up, Instant mashed potatoes, 3 spoons full times three, Broth, one cup, Half a quarter quesadilla , Bacon, couple bites, Justin’s hazelnut butter, Ginger ale, Nuts, handful, Vespa times four, lots of Water, Pirogi, potatoe cheese, UCAN, 5-6 servings, Coke a cola, 3 servings, Took two s caps, Took 2 caffeine pills...seems like a lot less than I used to eat..but still my gut is not happy
Peed 20 times???
Saw lots of cool things in the woods, but they were really just rocks and trees
Heard cool shit in the woods, but likely nothing, except for those beady eyes following me
Bees, hornets, yellow jackets stung a lot of the runners, Kim got four stings and I got away with only two
Damn, “yellow jackets are assholes” quoted from Kim
The stings would often “sting” later and it was good because they took your mind off other pain
Mountain lakes is beautiful because most of the trail, about 70 miles is on the PCT, single track like butter, smooth with little rocks or roots. The other 30 miles are gnarly, rocky shit that is difficult to run on and you have to look down to concentrate on not tripping and that is why my back hurts today.
Mountain lakes is also beautiful because it happens in the fall and the leaves are stunning colors. I can’t even explain the color you just have to see it. Even when I was worried about whether I was going to finish under thirty hours I still took the time to take picture as the colors were that beautiful.
Mountain lakes is beautiful when you get to spend the weekend with Kim. I was a bit stressed from work and a bit stressed about the race as I needed to finish to qualify for western and Kim made me laugh. We laughed a lot and my stomach muscles hurt. She is definitely a great person to travel with for a hundo. I didn’t even stress out this time when she repacked her drop bags the night before. In fact I need to school myself so I know what is even in my drop bags.
I needed to finish this race to qualify for western as I was fortunate enough to get my raffle ticket drawn and bypass the lottery to earn a free entry for WS 100. So the stakes were high and during the last 10-12 hours I wasn’t sure if I was going fast enough to finish under 30 hours. The first 26 miles were all above 5000 feet elevation and it was slow going for me because I really hadn’t trained enough up high. It took me almost 7 hours and after that I was chasing the clock. I did increase my pace for the next 30 but kept doing the math wrong and thought I would not make it back before the cut off. On the way back I also knew I had three big hills up at elevation to conquer and knew from previously in the day that I would have to slow my pace in order to not throw up or fold. So it was wee bit stressful.
Of course I went through all the options in my brain. If I didn’t qualify should I even consider doing western after all this race is half the elevation gain and no heat in sight, was I even worthy. I should just give away the free entry, which I could do until November 15th, surely someone else is more worthy and could finish the damn thing, why would I want to take up a spot that someone else could use. So who would I give it to? Damn all the things I planned for western, a coach, a sauna, (would we still get the sauna? Yes), travel to Utah for vacation, plans for May training, all of that gone....
Damn I might make it after all. But if I don’t would I try again to qualify, what a pain. Could I recover fast enough for Indiana 100 in three weeks? Should I wait for Javelina (did that last year, don’t want to do that again) or Rio de Lago (did that two years ago, don’t want to do that again) but aren’t those when Aurora is swimming districts and state, don’t want to miss that. Damn what a pain if I can’t qualify today, just give away the ticket, no I can finish, no I can’t, damn western.
That was going through my mind for 25 of the last 30 miles. Sheesh
When I got to the last aid station I had almost two hours to finish 4 miles, three miles of undulating uphill. So I knew I would finish. I was excited and there were so many volunteers we play acted a pit crew stop. I threw off my pack and ripped off my coat and asked a volunteer to stuff the coat in my pack. Another volunteer filled my water bottle as I am notoriously crampy during the last few miles and wanted to have liquid just in case. I stand there with my arms out and they loaded my pack on. I begin running out to cheers and realize I forget a gel, the final gel to get me to the finish after little food for the last few hours. The aid station volunteer grabs both flavors and chucks them at another volunteer who catches one and the other hits the woods, the one I want. I dig through the bushes grab it, hold it up in the air to more cheers and off I go. Fun.
I now get a bit verklempt, will I cry now or wait till later, I still have four miles of hills to get through at 5000 feet. I calm down and still am able to run the flats and downhill. It seems like every corner I go around is another hill, this goes on for too long, I start cussing at these little uphill section, damn when will they end. Finally I see cones and a road, I am almost done, I start crying and trying not to ugly cry, no one wants to see that. I finish and the race directors greet me with a congratulations and buckle and glass. Wow, I just finsished another hundo that I didn’t think I would finish (number 25) and I qualified for western, I guess I will keep that entry ticket I won.
Wow, just wow. I hurt...everywhere.
29:18
Gotta work on a faster pace on hills at elevation and figure out my gut.