Having the same course as yesterday
was both good news and bad news. The
good news is that I was already familiar with the course and could plan my race
accordingly. The bad news is that I had
such a good race yesterday, that I couldn’t help but compare my lap times to yesterday’s
race, and I had doubts about matching that performance.
Late last night, on the advice
of a friend, I poked a pin under my toenail to drain the blister that had been
causing me pain for the last three days.
To get the fluid out, I had to apply pressure to my toenail. That was painful at the time, but my toe felt
more comfortable during the night. By
morning, the blister gradually filled with fluid again, so I drained it again this
morning. It was easier to do it the
second time.
I was up early, so I also had
extra time to ice my right knee and my left Achilles tendon. After a hot bath, I stretched and massaged
various muscles in my legs. My knee and
Achilles tendon are both long-term concerns, but so far, I’ve been able to keep
them from getting worse.
I weigh myself every morning. Day-to-day fluctuations tell me if I’m
drinking the right amount. Today, for
example, my weight was down a pound from yesterday. That tells me I probably didn’t drink enough
yesterday. I paid more attention to my fluid
intake today. It helped that the weather
was much cooler today. Yesterday, it was
in the mid-60s when we started. Today,
the forecast high was 66. Longer-term
trends tell me if I’m eating enough. So
far, my weight has bounced around within a fairly narrow range. It doesn’t seem to be trending up or
down. That tells me I’m eating about the
right amount to replace the calories I’m burning. That doesn’t matter so much in the short-term,
but it’ll be more important by the end of the series.
Before today, I broken five
hours four days in a row. I ran faster
than the day before three days in a row.
I finished first overall two days in a row. None of those trends can continue forever,
and I had doubts about keeping them going today. With that in mind, I tried to start the day
with low expectations. In the early
laps, I planned to pace myself the same way I did yesterday. After that, I would just have to wait and see
what happened. That approach worked well
in my previous races. I’ve had good races
only because I didn’t try to force it.
Just before the race I
overheard Tim telling another runner that one of his ankles was bothering
him. When I asked him about it, he said
he was planning to run more conservatively today. Usually, he’s the one who goes out fastest in
the early laps.
To briefly recap the
configuration of the course, it was an out-and-back that we ran 12 times. At the beginning and end of each lap is a section
of gravel that’s fairly runnable. The
middle part of each lap is a longer section of grass and clay that has lots of
uneven footing. At the transition
between these two sections, there’s a short area where the trail is covered
with rocks. Finally, near the
turnaround, we had to go up and over a dome of smooth granite. Coming from the turnaround, the approach to
the granite is a tiring hill.
In the first lap, I started
running with Tim. For the first few
minutes, running felt a little awkward.
I don’t know if that was my knee or if it was just stiff muscles that
needed to warm up. After about a quarter
mile, running got much easier. My right knee
didn’t bother me, my left Achilles tendon didn’t bother me, and my big toe didn’t
hurt nearly as much as it has for the last three days.
The only two runners ahead of
us were Jessica and Greg, who were running together. After talking to Jessica yesterday, I knew
her goal was to break five hours. Later,
I learned that Greg was also hoping to break five hours, and that’s why he was
starting with Jessica.
In my first lap, I usually
carry a camera and take pictures. That
helps me ease into the race, so I don’t go out too fast. Today, I paused at the high point of the
course to take pictures of the rock formations on either side.
On my way back from the
turnaround, just after going over the granite dome, I used a long gradual
downhill section to pick up my pace just enough to catch up to Jessica and
Greg. For the rest of the lap, I ran
right behind them. We were going at the
same pace that I started yesterday, but today it felt easier. I felt like I had to slow down to stay behind
Jessica and Greg.
My plan for the first half of
the race was to keep running with Jessica and Greg. I felt like I could go faster, but I saw to
reason why I should. We were already on
a pace to break five hours, and the three of us were leading the race.
Yesterday, I struggled with the
uneven footing for the first two laps.
Today, it was never a problem. I
think, after running 12 laps on this course yesterday, I learned how to run it
without having any awkward steps.
If I was running by myself, I
would’ve started each lap with a short walking break. Jessica and Greg weren’t doing that, so I didn’t
either. The pace felt easy enough that I
didn’t need them. There was a small hill
in the middle of the gravel section. Jessica
and Greg were walking that, so I did too.
I always walked over the brief section with rocks. At first Jessica and Greg were running
through that, but it was short enough that I could easily catch up. Eventually, Greg started walking it too. I don’t remember if Jessica ever walked that
part. Finally, we all walked up the hill
and over the granite dome.
For the first lap or two,
Jessica and Greg were chatting. Later, I
joined in the conversation. We all
shared various running experiences.
Among other things, I learned that Jessica has done the FANS race
twice. In fact, she ran the 24-hour race
the same year I walked it. Our mileage
totals were similar, so we probably saw each other during that race. Eventually, Jessica started listening to an
audio book. Then Greg and I kept
chatting.
If one of us took a little
extra time at the aid station, the others would walk until they caught up. We stayed together for the first half of the
race.
To finish the marathon in five
hours, we needed to average 25 minutes per lap.
We were averaging a little less than 24 minutes. We reached the halfway mark in roughly
2:23. That’s about two minutes faster
than my halfway split from yesterday.
Jessica wanted to run the first
half a little bit fast, but then she backed off a little. She was pacing herself to make sure she broke
five hours. Greg and I continued running
at the same pace. By the time we
finished nine laps, we were nine minutes ahead of schedule for a five-hour
finish. In the 10th lap, I felt like we
were running faster. I was disappointed
to see that that lap was actually slower than the others. I think it was the only lap that took more
than 25 minutes.
During our next lap, as we were
running the grass and clay section, I felt like we were slowing down. I picked up the pace. Greg tried to stay with me, but he was
beginning to fall behind. Just before we
got to the granite dome, I saw Tim just ahead of us.
Every lap, we got farther ahead
of Tim. Now we were almost a full lap
ahead of him. I paused to let Greg catch
up, and I told him if he could push hard just a little bit longer, he could lap
Tim. That gave him a short-term goal.
We reached the turnaround just
after Tim did. We passed him on the way
back. Greg stayed with me all the way to
the end of that lap. When we got back to
the aid station, I realized it was our fastest lap so far.
With one lap to go, Greg now had
a cushion of more than 12 minutes. He
said he was going to give back some of that cushion in the last lap. I told him I was going to run hard in the
last lap.
Our 11th lap took just over 22
minutes. If I could to that again, I could
beat my time from yesterday. I wasn’t originally
going to try to do that, but now it was within my reach.
I ran hard all the way through
the gravel section. I walked over the
rocks, but ran hard the rest of the way to the turnaround. I even ran up and over the granite dome. I had never run that section before.
When I got to the turnaround, I
looked at my watch. I was hoping to get
there in 11 minutes. I got there in
nine!
Now I knew I had it. I walked up the hill to the granite dome, but
then I went back to running hard. I
already knew I would beat my time from yesterday, but I didn’t let up.
I finished in 4:41:35. I won for the third straight day, and I
continued my streak of getting faster every day. I picked up my “5” medal and drank some
chocolate milk.
Before I knew it, Greg was already
finishing. As it turns out, he didn’t
give any time back in the last lap. He
ran it in about 25 minutes. We both
waited for Jessica to finish. She broke
five hours with almost five minutes to spare.
I drove back to the hotel, parked
the car, and then realized I forgot my drop bag. I immediately drove back to the race to
retrieve it. When I got out of the car,
my left Achilles tendon was so tight, I was walking with a slight limp. It felt fine when I left the race, but 20
minutes sitting in a car was evidently too much. The combination of running so fast in my last
lap and sitting for so long afterward was the perfect storm to make it get
tight.
When I got back to the hotel
and took off my shoes and socks, I saw a small drop of clear discharge on my
big toe, right where I drained the blister earlier. I suddenly noticed that the toenail was no
longer discolored. There was no longer
any blood underneath it. I also realized
for the first time that my toe no longer hurt.
My first priority now was to
ice my Achilles tendon. While I was at
it, I also iced my right knee. After
taking a bath, my Achilles tendon felt fine, but I need to keep an eye on
it. I’ll be stretching it diligently.
Tomorrow, we’ll be back at Quarry
Park again, but we’ll be running a different route. I expect it to be easier. It’ll be all gravel, with no roots and no
uneven footing.
Race Statistics
Distance: 26.2 miles
Time: 4:41:35
Average Pace: 10:44
Lifetime Marathons/Ultras:
410
Minnesota Marathons/Ultras:
63
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