"Dam" Good Trail Race - Letchworth State Park

I had been planning on taking it easy for the two weeks leading up to the Green Lakes Endurance Runs 50k.  I kind of blew that idea.  A few weeks ago I was talking with a friend about the "Dam" Good Trail Race, a 14 mile out and back at Letchworth State Park.  It really sounded like a good idea, but I know I need to taper before the 50k.

So late last night I get a text message that says "See you in the morning, Sleep Well!"  So I'm expected at the race and I hate to disappoint a nice young lady, I'm running the "Dam" Good Trail Race. 

I woke up at 5:00 am to a roaring thunderstorm dropping buckets of rain.  PERFECT WEATHER FOR A TRAIL RACE!  I grabbed a Pepsi Throwback (Real Sugar, no high-fructose corn syrup), a pack of Pop-Tarts and a cup of coffee and hit the road.

I showed up and of course the race site was a soupy mess.  Nice and slick, just the way I like it.

Since I am tapering I planned to run this very slowly, taking lots of walk breaks.  I wasn't even concerned if I finished dead last.  I set out on a nice easy pace and enjoyed the scenery.

About two miles into the run I hit an unavoidable puddle and stepped on a root or rock rolling my left ankle.  I got that nice, sharp pain that ran up to my knee.  I take a few more steps and it doesn't feel too bad.  A few hundred years up someone moves to the right side of the trail so I can pass.  My left foot hit just off the trail and starts to slide.  My already sore ankle can't take it and I slide off of the trail and start heading down a steep embankment.  Luckily I grab a tree and don't fall too far.  I'm a muddy mess and the ankle hurts.

I limp about a quarter mile to the first aid station and they help me wash my hands and now soaked handheld water bottle.  My ankle hurts, but not too bad.  I can keep going.

I move along pretty good until about mile six when my ankle start getting stiff.  This causes me to slow down a bit and alter my gait.  Not a good sign.  I make it through the turn around point and start headed back.  I'm moving slow, but still running.  At mile ten the pain takes over and I start walking.  I pretty much decide to walk it in with a few bits of running.

About mile thirteen I really run into problems.  By this point I had been on the trail much longer than I expected.  My inadequate breakfast and lack of food on the trail is starting to take an effect.  I'm tired and my calves are starting to cramp up.  I'm feeling seriously deflated.  I quickly massage and stretch my calves and decide to run the last mile in.  I finished in a horrible 3+ hour time, but I finished.  I wasn't even dead last.

As bad as the run was, I did learn a lot from it.  The biggest thing is I need to be smarter when taking a longer run.  Eat food of substance beforehand.  Bring extra food with me in case my time gets extended.  Instead of water I should have been using a sports drink.  I'm sure this contributed to my cramping at the end of the run.

A second thing is I need to respect my taper.  There is no good reason to run a 14 mile trail race in tough conditions the week before an ultra.  I tired myself out and risked injury for no good reason.  I really need to be smarter going forward.

Signed Up For Green Lakes Endurance Run

I have signed up for the Green Lakes Endurance Run 50k race.  It is two weeks away on August 29, 2010 and will be my first ultra.  I've been thinking about running this for a few weeks but I've been unsure of myself.  When I looked at the registration I saw that they are allowing 125 runners and 124 had signed up.  I figured if I'm going to do it, I better just jump in.

I'm nervous about the race.  I don't know how I will perform.  I guess this is pretty normal though.  I plan to run the race very conservatively and not convern myself with time.  I will walk all the uphills and take frequent breaks.  I will stop at the aid stations and ensure I am drinking and eating enough.  May main objective in this race is to gain knowledge and experience and have some fun.  I want to figure out what works for me and what doesn't. 

The Green Lakes 50k is set up as a 12.5 km loop.  You have to complete four loops to finish.  There will also be a 100km running at the same time.  I've discussed the course with a couple of veterans and I'm getting mixed answers.  A female runner from the Runnersworld forums says that there is nothing particularly hard about the course, but there is one steep, short uphill that I should consider walking.  Of course she ran the 100km last year in 11:51:xx finishing as the third woman.  My running partner from yesterday ran the 50k version and said it was a challenging course because even though the uphills weren't steep they were fairly long.  Also, the section called "The Serengehti" is completely out in the open and can be an issue if the sun is shining.

Either way, I'm registered and believe I can cover the 50 km.  I don't even care if I'm dead last, as long as I finish and learn something.

Since the race is two weeks away I am going to start my taper now.  No more long runs until race day.  I plan to alternate days of rest with easy runs in the four to six mile range.  I want to do enough where I won't lose fitness, but little enough to go into the race rested and hopefully (mostly) pain free.