Loop 1 went really well. There were aid stations about every 4 miles. I skipped the first aid station and when I got to the next one at mile 8, I looked at all the food on the table (trust me it was a nice spread), and nothing looked good. This had me worried. I can normally eat almost anything at any time. My stomach just didn't feel right. Had a few potato chips and took a cookie with me and nibbled on it as I ran. The next aid station was just fluids and I still had plenty, so went on past this one too. There were pit toilets galore. I never did have to squat in the woods!

When I got back to the main tent there was another amazing display of food, but the only thing I wanted to do was get some dry gear on. Hubby was waiting for me with my bag. The main tent was heated, so I thought about going in there to change. When I went in it felt like it was 100 degrees, so back outside. I felt like I was at T1 of an Ironman. I sat down on a therma-rest and hubby and my friend Elizabeth took such good care of me. It's really hard to take compression socks off and put them back on when your muscles are trashed. I changed both shirts, put dry socks on (noticed a good blister on my left foot, so lubed it up), compression socks back on, same shoes (they were the only ones that I had put screws in and I felt like the screws were more beneficial than the shoes being dry--good decision), dry hat and gloves. I had a second water bladder ready to go ahead of time, so hubby switched that out for me. And he refilled my Infinit mix in my small handheld. It was really foaming up as I ran, and I was sure that was contributing to my stomach problems, but wasn't sure what else to do. Took a couple Ibuprofen tablets. I went back to the food table and had a few gold fish, grabbed a handful of m&ms and took off again. Through the timing mat and out for the 2nd loop.

I felt so much better after that pit stop and that feeling lasted for maybe 4 miles. Got to the aid station and just stood there again knowing I should eat, but nothing sounding good. I had one fig newton. During the next segment of the run my stomach began to cramp. I was sure it was the foamy Infinit mix that was causing my problems so I quit trying to force it down and just switched to my water. I was running with a more experienced runner at the time, and mentioned the cramps. He gave me a couple of antacids, and I took them and continued on to the next aid station. Here I dumped the handheld (Infinit) and filled it with Gatorade. I had a cup of chicken broth. This was probably mile 23-24. By now I was running mostly alone and feeling pretty low. I remember wanting to ask people for hugs, but being rational enough to resist the urge. I knew I wasn't holding the pace I had hoped, and probably wasn't going to make my 7 hour goal. By mile 26 I was all alone out there. I couldn't see anyone in front of me or behind and me. I was hurting, tired, and feeling lonely, so I let myself get emotional for a little bit. And then I told myself to suck it up, put the big girl panties on, and get it done.

I did a "systems check" and realized I wasn't in that bad of shape. I was tired, but I wasn't injured, and have had times when I've felt much worse. I also reminded myself to be grateful that I was even able to be out there doing stupid crazy shit like running 31 miles for "fun." That helped and kept me moving forward. What I wasn't realizing was that I was doing better than a lot of people. The course had gotten really slippery. The packed snow was just warm enough to be treacherous. There were people around me slipping, falling, going down the hills holding on to trees, etc. The screws I put in my shoes the night before (never tried them out ahead of time), saved me. I slipped a little here and there, but NOTHING like others. It was strange, because I was passing some people, but it never registered that I was doing better than anyone else. Luckily I also had a couple gels in my pack, so I took one at around mile 25 and the other one at about mile 28.

The last 4-5 miles got better and better the closer I got to the finish line. On the entire second lap, I never got passed until about a half mile from the finish. I had somehow passed 30 people on that second loop!

Work on a different nutrition plan. The Infinit mix has protein in it that I think was causing the foaming. I'm going to return the product they made for me and try again without the protein. Other than the nutrition problems, I was happy with my performance.

Picked up my finisher's belt buckle, gave it a kiss, and went to the main tent to warm up and try to get some food. I had some more broth and a cup of coffee.


stomach/nutrition problems. Maybe I should just stick with real food :-)


This is a great Ultra race. They advertise that it's within a days drive of 80% of the population of the United States. Come out and join the fun.