Umstead 100-Mile Endurance Run - RunUltra Marathon

Lap 1:
It was a dark, cold morning so I just concentrated on keeping my pace correct thru the first lap. I wasn’t able to seed myself close to the start so I just had to deal with a bunch of people jogging when I wanted to go a little faster. My strategy this year was to go out a lot slower than last year (no sub-8-hour 50 mile split!) but I didn’t wanna run so slow that my hip flexors locked up before Mile 50 either. 9:30 to 10:00 pace was where I wanted to be. So I picked it up and got out of traffic. By the time I reached the turnoff to the airport spur I was at my goal pace. At about Mile 1, I heard a voice say “good morning…Jeff, is that you?” It was a friend of mine that I know from running ultras in the Southern States. We immediately latched on to each other and settled into a nice low 10-minute pace. We chatted about how this all started and how I used to be chasing HIM in races. In 2007, I took his second place spot at the Bartram 50K only about 7 miles from the finish. He told me it was really cool to see me progress in the sport. Good guy. Definitely made lap 1 feel more comfortable. We ran up the long one-mile incline at the 4.2 mark and then stopped at the water point at the top. Soon after, we were at the back aid station at 6.8 miles in. We got some food and I had to use the portapotty. We were on our way soon. Then it was hill time. SAWTOOTH…we ran up at a comfortable pace but slower than last year. I had to keep my strategy going. We wound up finishing the lap at 2:04 elapsed. After being counted at the start/finish, I sat down and got my lap 2 supplies from my awesome crew. Soon I was ready to go again.

Lap 2:
Michael had left a few minutes before me, but I had decided I was gonna pick it up a bit on the second lap so I could make up a few minutes. I wanted to be right at 4 hours when I got back from Lap 2. I ran up the hill out of the headquarters area and caught up with Michael about a mile and a half into the loop. I wanted to keep my pace down under 9:30 for this lap. I made sure to take a gel at the water point at mile 3.5 (16). I also put an extra one in my pocket (they had them there on the table) just in case. I ran up the long hill and chatted with a few people as I passed. I reached the back aid station about 55 minutes into the loop and grabbed some food and drinks but didn’t stay long. I climbed Sawtooth again, at a nice easy pace, and picked it up when I got to the top. I took my Roctane at the water point at Mile 8.5 (21). The long downhill at Mile 10 (22.5) really helped this time as I was able to pick up the pace for a half mile. I took some water and Gatorade at the last water point (23) and headed back towards base camp. My quads were starting to get sore already. But no other leg pain was happening. I had caught up to my goal time. I came in at just under 4 hours. Pete asked what I needed, Brian got out all my Lap 3 supplies, and Jess took some pics. I changed out of my K-Swiss Kona flats and put on my Asics trail shoes. My crew rocks.

Lap 3:
I decided it was time to change shirts so I took off all four layers I was wearing and put on a nice dry UnderArmour shirt with my P-Town jacket over it. Much more comfy. I left my tights on though, it was still chilly. I was using my iPod so I was didn’t focus too much on what was hurting me but I could start to feel my quads starting to complain on the downhills and flats on this lap. I took my gel at the first water point (28.5) and then some water at the second (30.5). I reached the back aid station around an hour into the loop and I took a little more time this time. I was now 32 miles into the race and I needed to start thinking about strategy a little more. So far everything was great. I needed to eat a little more though. So I did. I made sure I felt full when I left. I climbed Sawtooth again. This time I felt my heart rate spike a bit more…so I figured I might walk it on the next lap. I took my Roctane at the next water point (33.5) and continued on. The Roctane brought me back to life quickly!! That stuff is awesome. The long downhill at Mile 10 (35) helped to bring my average pace down into the mid 9’s again so I was still looking good. I got back to base camp at just about 6 hours and 2 minutes. Right on schedule. This time I needed a little more help with my feet. I took off my running tights. Pete and Brian helped me put Aquaphor on my feet but I put the same shoes and socks back on. After some more supplements and a drink, I was ready to head out again.

Lap 4:
I was happy that I’d not let my strategy go, but I started to get nervous because my legs seemed to be hurting a bit more than I remembered from last year. I thought I had felt awesome at 50 miles last year but this year I had a lot more quad soreness than I thought I would. Still, I was in good shape…none of the pain made it feel like I couldn’t keep up the pace I wanted. I was still right on track…actually, a bit ahead. I had pulled out of camp at 6 hours, 10 minutes elapsed when I wanted to be at 6:15. So I figured I could run really comfortably on this lap, even walk the big hills if I wanted, and still be okay. This lap was good. Music was keeping me entertained, I ran with a guy for about a mile who was really cool, and my nutrition was spot on. Gel at 3.5 (41) and food at the back aid station. This time at the back aid station I had to ask what time it was since my Garmin had died at Mile 5 (42.5) and I didn’t know how fast or slow I was running. They told me I was just over 7 hours in, so I was doing just fine. The big hills at the back of the course felt more daunting this time. I ran up Sawtooth for what I decided would be the last time. I was feeling it in my quads now and I didn’t want to overcompensate on the hamstrings. The hammies and calves were still in good shape and I wanted to keep it that way since I knew I’d need them later in the race when I needed to climb. I took my Roctane at Mile 8.5 (46) and kept going. As usual it brought me back to life when I thought I was falling apart. This time, the first time in the race, I took a THIRD gel at the last water point (48) because my body was starting to feel like it was using nutrition faster to compensate for the sheer distance. After turning into the parking area, I saw “shirtless guy” for the first time…running out on his fifth lap. I decided I needed to catch him. I ran into the headquarters area and got counted. My 50 mile elapsed time was 8 hours, 5 minutes. A full 20 minutes slower than last year, which is what I wanted, but still a bit faster than plan. I wanted to be at 50 miles at 8 hours, 20 minutes so I’d know I was keeping a slower pace. But still, 15 minutes ahead wasn’t bad. My 50-mile pace was 9:42. At this point, I wanted to sit for a few minutes. I figured it’d be a good idea since I was way ahead of my goal. I had a blister on my right foot which Pete put some Aquaphor on for me. Pete and Brian helped me change my socks…one pair of Experia’s for another. I had a drink, a hot dog, and my supplements. Janelle used the stick on my legs. I was really feeling my right quad a lot. Janelle said she could SEE the knot popping out of my leg. I wasn’t able to really focus on what was happening…I was just trying to relax. It was nice to have fresh socks on though. I put my shoes back on and got ready to run with Jess and Kelly. Shaun took some pictures and we were ready to head out.

Lap 5:
Here’s where it started to get interesting. It’s funny how a switch flips in your head after going 50 miles. It was now a conscious effort to keep the pain at bay, knowing I still had another 50 miles to run. I knew I was gonna start slowing down a bit. Kelly was AWESOME at telling me what our pace was and how we were doing overall. Jess provided some great conversation and motivation for me…we talked about training and Boston and ultras and how she might want to come to Umstead next year as her first 50 miler. Before I knew it, we were at the long 4.2 hill (54.2) and we started to run up it. I could feel my heart rate starting to spike so I decided to walk a bit. Once the hill wasn’t so steep I decided to run again and we crested the hill after a while. I was now about 55.5 miles in and I still felt okay, even though my legs were REALLY starting to hurt. My feet were still good, the blister on my right foot was evident, but not painful. When we got to the back aid station, I sat down, ate a bit, and Kelly helped me lance the blister and put some gauze on it. We asked about soup, but the aid station volunteers joked at me and said I would get some on my next lap, I’m going too fast for them to get it ready. Cool. As Kelly tended to my feet, Jess joked that next time it’d be Pete rubbing slippery goo on me. Funny stuff. Kelly massaged my feet for a minute or so, with Vaseline, and put my socks back on for me. It made me feet feel SOOOOOOO much better. After about 8 minutes, we were on our way again. I told my two pacers that I wanted to walk up Sawtooth and the rest of the big steep hills but I’d run the flats and downhills. When we got to Sawtooth at Mile 7.5 (57.5) I told Jess if she wanted to run it to see what it was like, go ahead, just for the experience…so she did! Then she came back and walked up the rest of it with us…we were about halfway up when she got back. I ran the flats and downhills for the rest of the lap and walked the rest of the uphills. I took my Roctane on schedule at 59 and another regular gel at 60.5. My nutrition was still good, and my stomach was holding up for the moment. I heard a whoop whoooooop as we approached Mile 12 (62) and I realized it was Shannon. I whooped back and said hi as we passed. We came back into camp at about 10 hours and 55 minutes into the race. Just about 20 minutes slower than last year…so I was staying consistent! Pete was getting ready to run this 6th lap with me, and Jess was gearing up to run another as well. She was using this run as a long slow distance training day for Boston. When we got back into camp I noticed I didn’t see “shirtless guy” but the crew told me he’d been there and gone already so I had some motivation (secretly) to keep going. I needed to pass him. I changed my shirt again and got comfortable. A little more Aquaphor and more supplements…and an extra Aleve this time. I really wanted to keep the pain down. Pete, Jess, and I left the headquarters on our way to Mile 75.

Lap 6:
As soon as we started walking, my left hip flexor seized up. I couldn’t lift my left foot off the ground. So I sat down and Jess massaged it for about 2 minutes while I groaned in pain. But once she was done, it was better. It never gave me a problem again on that lap. THANKS JESS!! We walked up to the flat part of the park where the airport spur began and we started to run. I felt okay, but my legs were in a lot of pain. I started to feel knee pain here too. My heart rate was staying in the right range (thanks to Kelly’s Garmin HR strap…thanks Kel) so I figured I didn’t need to walk the small uphills yet. That would come later. The three of us chatted and passed the time, I stopped at the water point at Mile 3.5 (66) and I used the portapotty. I had been getting worried cuz I didn’t have to go to the bathroom for a while. I did wind up peeing a bit, but I had no physical need to do the other thing. So…on we went. On the long downhill around Mile 4 (66.5) we saw “shirtless guy”…but he was no longer shirtless. We caught up to him. He was walking and he had his massage Stick with him. We encouraged each other as I passed by but I smiled to myself that I had caught up to him. We started walking up the mile-long hill at 4.2 (66.7) and all of a sudden “shirtless guy” came running past. I kinda did a double take…why would you be walking the flats and then run the uphills? Perhaps hamstring pain? Well anyway, a minute later, I told Jess and Pete “I wanna run”. So we ran the whole rest of the long hill. I passed by “shirtless guy” and when we got to the water point at the top of the hill, I turned around. I didn’t even see him in the distance. I took some water, as did Jess and Pete, and we went on our way. Only 1.4 miles to the back aid station. I commented to Jess and Pete that right about this point last year, the leader lapped me on his way to finishing the race. But I hadn’t seen the leader yet. Upon reaching the back aid station, Pete tended to my blister, which had grown significantly now, and put Aquaphor on both my feet for me. I sat a bit and Jess gave me some food and some soup to eat. The chicken rice soup was HEAVENLY. I was starting to feel a bit woozy in the head, but still cognizant and sane. No hallucinations. After tending to my needs at the aid station we headed out. Jess told Pete that he could be the one to run up Sawtooth and come back this time. So when we got there, that’s what he did. He came back to meet us about half way up. We stopped at the water point at 8.5 (70) and I took my second Roctane of the loop. Starting on Lap 5, I decided it was better to do 2 Roctanes per loop instead of 1 regular and 1 Roctane…I needed all the extra aminos I could get. At this point, my stomach started to rebel a bit. I didn’t feel like I was absorbing as fast as usual. But we kept on going. I ran a nice pace, under 9 minutes, all the way down the long downhill at Mile 10 (72.5) and bought some time for the next part of the loop, because most of it was uphill. I took a regular gel at the last water point (73) and we headed back towards base camp. About three quarters of a mile from the headquarters, the leader lapped me. As he passed, I cheered for him and he smiled as he ran past. I ran most of the last part except for the big hill that Shannon calls “cellulite hill”. I had been walking that one since lap 4. We got back into camp and I crossed the Mile 75 mark at a lap time of approximately 2 hours 30 minutes, with 13 hours 40 minutes elapsed in the race. I had picked up about 18 minutes from last year on this lap. Another quick rest stop with some food and supplements, and fresh socks (took off the Experias and went for the nice warm thicker Thorlos now), and Janelle was ready to pace me on Lap 7.

Lap 7:
My hip flexor wasn’t in bad shape, although it was grabby. I was definitely hurting. My quads were knotted and painful. As we walked out of the headquarters area, I thought it was time for me to finally go to the bathroom. So I ducked into a bathroom pavilion and tried to go. But it was only gas. False alarm. It was worrying me that I wasn’t going to the bathroom. I didn’t feel dehydrated so I figured I was just using everything I was putting in myself…which told me I needed to eat more on this lap. But my stomach was just not having that. I was starting to feel nauseous. It was getting dark now, so Janelle and I turned our headlights on and started on our way on the airport spur. I wound up walking even the slighted inclines. I was still able to run the flats though. We chatted about all kinds of stuff, waved to people, and tried to stay positive. I was hurting but I was really motivated to get done. Less than a marathon to go. I stopped for a Roctane at the water point at 3.5 (78.5) and we ran down the long downhill at Mile 4 (79). We walked the entire mile long uphill and stopped for water at the top (80.5). I was able to jog from that water point all the way to the back aid station, but during our jog, I got the hiccups. We came upon a guy walking, who turned out to be in the same group of runners that the women’s winner was with. So we chatted a bit, but then left him behind as we jogged. I needed to get to the aid station so I could get rid of my hiccups. So that’s what I did. Janelle encouraged me to eat and drink but my stomach didn’t like the idea. I was really feeling sick. I hadn’t thrown up but I felt like I might if I eat too much of anything solid. I drank some of the red fruit punch I loved so much last year and that made me feel better. I also swigged some Ginger Ale. At least it made me feel better for the moment. I told Janelle we’d probably walk the whole rest of the way. My PCL was starting to show signs of injury and I didn’t want to injure myself to the point that I wouldn’t be able to run Boston in 22 days. So we powerwalked the rest of the way thru the course. We walked up all the hills, we even walked the flats and downhills. My quads didn’t like that, but I was more worried about my knees and hamstrings. It was much lighter this year out on the course than last year. Janelle and I both commented that we probably didn’t need our lights in most places on the course, the moon was very bright. The miles seemed to go by quickly, it was good to have Janelle to talk to while I was trying to ignore the pain in my legs and the desire to be done with the run. I got the hiccups about a mile from the finish and I quickly laid down and got rid of them with my little hiccup trick. We came back into the base camp about 3 hours and 15 minutes after we left. I was hoping for 3 hours, but I was still ahead of the game. I just needed the last lap to be decent, but I knew once I got up again, there would be no more running. As I came over to the chairs, I got the hiccups again. When I sat down, Jon was ready to go, so I just did the most minimal stop I possibly could, because if I had sat down for longer I think I might have quit. I had some chicken broth, which got rid of the hiccups. I changed my shoes back to my K-Swiss because the were lighter and bigger. My feet were very swollen and with the thicker socks on I didn’t want to have the “needles in the tops of my feet” feeling like last year. So far, nothing like that was happening. I took my last supplements, but decided not to take gels with me this time. I decided I’d walk the lap and just survive on the food at the aid stations. Soon, Jon and I were ready to go. One more lap til the finish. I put on a jacket this time because I didn’t want to get cold. The temp was dropping quickly.

Lap 8:
Oh the pain…I just wanted to be done. Less than a half marathon to go and I’d be finished. As we walked out of base camp, Jon told me I had been in 17th position for a while and 3rd in my age group. I didn’t let that affect me like it did last year because it ended up being my undoing. I had tried to run a bit on Lap 8 but it shot me down so much that I could barely walk by Mile 4 of that loop. I didn’t wanna be walking 22 and 23 minute miles so I decided to just keep striding out the walking at 16 and 17 minute pace so I’d have a sub-4-hour loop on Lap 8. I wanted to run really badly but I kept my head in the game and I resisted the urge. On a few smaller downhills I let myself jog a bit, but almost immediately, I felt amazing pain in my left leg. About 4 miles into this loop (mile 91.5 overall) I started to really feel the blister on my right foot and my right big toenail. It was a significant amount of pain now. The bottoms of both feet felt very abrasive…like they’d been scratched on sandpaper. Jon kept talking to me to make sure I was all there, mentally. I got the hiccups again at Mile 5.5 (93) and I decided I’d try to get to the aid station before I got rid of them. But they were starting to make me sick. I don’t know how I did it but I said, maybe they’ll go away, and they were gone. A mile later, they were back…but we were a half mile from the back aid station so I let them go. When we got to the aid station, Jon went to get me some food, and I laid down and did the hiccup trick again. Gone. Again. We left the aid station after I drank some Ginger Ale and some Fruit Punch…I sipped on some chicken broth but it didn’t feel right, so I didn’t eat it. I figured, I came all this way, a little chicken broth isn’t gonna make or break me, and if it doesn’t make me feel better there’s no point. Only 5.5 miles to go…I had come 94.5 miles so far…and I still had about 2 hours and 10 minutes to pull off a PR. I knew the next 5.5 miles would take almost that long so I decided not to stop for long. Jon grabbed some cookies for me, just in case I needed them in an emergency, and we went on. Up the big hills we went…for the last time. No more Sawtooth after this lap. No more water point in the hills (we did see a guy there who was still on Lap 6, and I felt for him…I couldn’t imagine still having 30 miles to go at that time of night). No more long drawn out downhill and Mile 9 (96.5). No more huge uphill at 9.2 (96.7). No more…wait…I wanna run the downhill at Mile 10! So we did! I was RUNNING at Mile 98! I ran the entire half-mile long downhill between Mile 9.8 and 10.3 (97.3 – 97.8)!! I wanted to walk up the long uphill towards the last water point, but I felt so good for running a bit! It hurt a lot but I was so motivated to get finished, now that I only had less than 2.5 miles to go in the race!! We stopped at the last water point and I just drank some water, just so I could feel better. Almost immediately after we left though, damn hiccups again!! This time I was determined to just get back to the finish line and then get rid of ‘em. But again…nausea. So for the last time I laid down and got rid of the hiccups. We were at a place where I felt like I could run so I ran a bit, right up to the Mile 11 (98.5) marker and then we walked up the hill. When we got to the top, we ran again for another quarter of a mile, and then I decided it was time to just walk it in. Our elapsed time on the loop was 3 hours, 32 minutes…way ahead of my 4 hour “cutoff” time. We had less than a mile to go and I knew I’d run a bit towards the end of the mile. We turned into the parking area and passed the Mile 12 (99.5) sign, and I knew I had only a half mile to go. We were at 3 hours, 38 minutes. I ran. I ran as fast as I could possibly imagine…and it was about 11 minute pace at that point. I was using every bit of energy I had. When the trail sloped down and it became rocky and rooty, I decided to start walking because I didn’t want to trip and fall a quarter mile from the finish. Jon ran ahead to find the crew and tell them I was coming in to the finish. When I got to the bottom and was about to start the little stair climb up to the finish line, I waited to hear my crew cheering for me! But there was nothing. The base camp area was dark and quiet as I ran past it. We had come in so far ahead of schedule that everyone was inside the headquarters building staying warm! So I announced my number and ran past the finish line. The volunteers at the finish line station tried to get me to eat something but I refused. Pete picked me up (not physically…but you know what I mean) and brought me inside to sit down. I was spent. Destroyed. I wasn’t sure what was happening around me, but I knew I was finished with the race. It was sort of anticlimactic this year, due to the fact that it wasn’t my first 100. But either way, I had PR’ed by 25 minutes and I was happy to be done! Brian had already left to go get the car so we could get out of the park by 3am instead of having to wait for the 4am gate opening. I grabbed a quick drink, tried to ignore the extreme nausea in my stomach, and hobbled out to the car. Jon and Janelle grabbed their stuff and headed to their car as well. I got in and we all headed back to Jon and Janelle’s house to get some rest. I was supremely sore and spent. But I had no idea the pain I was in for in the morning.


I'm not sure I can venture an answer to this.

Epilogue:
I changed and got ready for bed, but was coughing and wheezing from the sheer exertion of the day. My stomach was still a mess. I took some Pepto that Janelle gave me, but as soon as I laid down in bed to get some rest, I coughed…and that caused an uproar in my body. I finally threw up after HOURS of feeling nauseous. Luckily I had a bag near the bed that was empty. Brian got me some water and put some pillows on the bed so I could sleep sitting up. I managed to get about 2 hours of sleep but at 0600 I got up and I had some crazy tachycardia going on. I felt like my heart was gonna accelerate uncontrollably. So I started drinking water. I remembered when Bridget didn’t drink enough water during a marathon and the same thing happened to her due to dehydration post race. So I just kept drinking the water until I felt my heart rate slow down. I woke up again around 0830 and the same thing happened to a lesser degree, so I drank water again, and decided to stay awake for the day. The rest of the day was spent socializing with my awesome pacer/crew/jockstrap friends and going shopping at Trader Joe’s again, snacking at home, etc. Just a nice relaxing day. I tried to ignore the supreme pain in my legs. So much pain and tightness that I couldn’t even move my legs off the couch or into the car, I had to pick them up with my hands and move them. Walking was near impossible.

One day post race, I am starting to recover and I can use my legs a bit more. Still, even now, I don’t think I ever wanna do another 100 miler again. This pain is way too much to make it worth it. I’ll stick with marathons, 50K’s, and 50-Milers. Maybe a 100K (Canadian Death Race??) some day.

Two days post-race, I'm recovering nicely but still very sore in the quads. Should be able to take a few running steps by the weekend though.


The sheer distance!


Ultrarunning at its best. These are serious runners and the support is top-notch.