Monday, October 17, 2005
Sunday, October 16, 2005
Edmund Fitz 100 K . . . ROCKS!
On Friday I arrived to the DECC in Duluth for the mandatory pre race briefing. I was going to meet Scott and Alicia and attend the meeting, then follow them to a mutual friends' home who was going to put us up, or put up with us, for the weekend. It was really nice not booking the hotel and spending a wad of cash, that whole scene. I was looking forward to staying at K's home.
Scott was running the 100K solo and Alicia was going to crew for us. I was pleasantly surprised to learn that she was planning on doting on me every bit as she was going to be there for Scott.
We attended the meeting, picked up our race packets and headed over to K's. We hadn't had dinner yet so we stopped at CUB FOODS and did a fair amount of shopping.
The three of us were able to have the guest house to ourselves. It was very nice; we set the alarms for 2 AM and dozed off to sleep.
2 AM and the wind was whipping! I could hear it blowing outside. Oh man, I just didn't want that. Luckily, the temperature was 48F, it was temperature was warmer than I had thought it would be.
We packed up all of our junk and headed off to the start line, in Finland, MN.
It was REAL windy. But REAL beautiful. The stars were so bright, up in the beautiful north woods. The moon was almost full; just spectacular. We were watching shooting stars. I asked the stars to guide me to the finish line without an injury. They obliged.
At 4 AM the sky was so bright that I didn't need a flashlight. I put in back into my bag and never did use it.
As I went to the port-a-potties I realized that I was definately going to put my wind pants on over my shorts. It was freezing! That wind was crazy, I'm glad I didn't know what the wind chill was, but I bet it was in the 20's.
5AM and were ready to roll. I had my iPod, food, clothes, etc. with Alicia in her car; she would follow us along the 62 mile course to the finish. She was going to pull over before each 5K aid station to see what we needed.
This is an interesting race. There are 100+ relay teams, consisting of 5-8 people. Each team has a vehicle, one person runs a 'leg' of the race at a time, hands off a baton to the next person, and so on. The team, in the vehicle, drives along the course.
For the solos; if you are lucky, you have a crew. That person will drive along the course and cater to your every whim. Alicia even bought us hot coffee at one point..just because we thought it would taste good at that moment. And it did!
You would think there would be a ton of traffic and chaos; but there isn't. It is very well run and quite organized. If one isn't up to the solo, I would certainly suggest one try the team relay.
OK, so 5AM and we are off! The solo runners are offered a 5 AM or 7 AM start. If you can finish in 10 hours, you are encouraged to take the 7 AM start.
As I was running along someone introduced himself as Brent. Here it was Brent from WI who posted on my blog a week or so ago. It was real neat to actually meet him in person. Brett finished in 11:15! An awesome first finish at the 100K distance! Congratulations, Brent.
I really struggled with my running the first 4-5 hours. My right thigh was hurting, it's never ached before and I was worried about having had the flu earlier in the week. My legs were dead. Just tired dead. I was thinking about all of the miles I have run this summer, all the races, TCM was just 2 weeks ago, well, duh, I should have tired legs. But I didn't want them this early in the day. I didn't feel like I had eaten enough carbs the night before, I didn't have my usual pasta feast. All of these things kept nagging at me.
Around 1.5 hours into the race I fell in back of Scott and just couldn't catch him. It was making me mad; not that he was in front of me, but that I could not catch him. He would run, then take a good long walk break, run again, walk break. I could make NO gain on him. I wasn't taking a walk break, I was running consistantly and could not catch him. Up the hill he'd go and I'd be trudging along trying to catch him.
I was lucky, eventually he waited for me to catch up. I think he was stretching and just decided to wait. I ran the next 45 miles with him! We would run a while, then walk, 'run to the passing sign', then take a walk break. He told me this is how he has always run this race-I figured I'd run along with him, he has 5 finishes here!
I think the walk breaks saved my legs. By miles 25-30 I was coming back, getting into what I call "The Julie Zone". I get into a place where nothing hurts, I have only happy thoughts and yeah, I'm going to finish this thing.
My Big Lake Run Club was doing the relay race out there. I was SO happy to see them along the course. It was awesome. They all piled out of their van, ran around me with hugs and candy, gave TONS of encouragement and piled back into their van, continuing up the road. I saw them out there a few times. Once I was so happy to see them I did a little dance.
I was feeling awesome.
Eventually it warmed up, I was able to give Alicia my pants, gloves and ear band. Thank goodness!
Just before 50K the 7AM starters began to catch us. It's so cool to see them. The winner from last years race was the first to pass us (he won this race, too). He moved along like a well oiled machine. I just can't imagine to be able to hold that pace. He finished in like 7 hours. Gah.
Somewhere along the course Scott told me his favorite part was coming up. We turned the corner and there was like a one mile rolling downhill. The sun was shining, the leaves were in their full color, the road went down, down, down; and you could see Lake Superior in all her splendor. It was beautiful. It took my breath away.
We ran and ran and ran..down, down and down. It was awesome. I think I smiled the whole way.
Scott has run the course .. and finished .. all five times. He knows it very well. He told me when each aid station was coming up, etc. It made it very nice. It was like I had a tour guide!
Alicia, as I said, was just fantastic. I told her at one stop that I'd like a sandwich, she'd pull ahead to the next 5K check point, walk across the highway and stand there, sandwich in hand, asking me what I'd like at the next check point. It truly was a treat.
At one point, near the end of the race I asked her for a potato chip. I and Scott had grabbed a handful from her earlier and they were really good. Sure enough, at the next aid point she had a baggie chips for me to carry along the course!
The last 18 miles of the course is run on Grandmas Marathon. I know that course very well, so it really surprised me that the course seemed so hilly yesterday! Of course, after running 50 miles I guess anything seems hilly.
I and Scott hit 50 miles at 9:45 or so. You know, when I run FANS, on pavement as well, it takes me almost 12 hours to get 50 miles. And there aren't any hills! This makes no sense to me. I suppose since I usually enter FANS for the 24 hour option, maybe I run slower. I don't know.
Shortly after the 50 mile mark Scott began doing calculations and figured maybe we could break 12 hours. I was feeling really good. I thought maybe we could. We ran/walked a while longer and Scott told me I should go ahead and break 12 hours. I thought about it a while and decided yeah, I'd give it a try.
I ran ahead, I felt sad to break away from Scott, I had really enjoyed running with him and he saved my legs. But I wanted to break 12. Off I went.
I asked Alicia for my iPod at the next station and rocked on for the finish line.
The relay runners make the ultra runners feel like rock stars. I had one group of relayers stand along the shoulder and do the WAVE as I ran by. They yelled and screamed at me and told me how awesome I was. It was incredible.
It was one big ego trip, those last 5 miles in.
Rick; an ultra runner friend of mine appeared around 55 miles. He ran the Glacial Trail 50K last week so wasn't running. It was so neat to run with him for a while. I had no idea he would be out on the course. He just wanted to offer his support.
I had 5 miles left. If I ran 11 minutes miles I would make it. I had been running 11 minute miles; I could do it. Maybe. If I didn't fall or puke or who knows. Anything could go wrong at this point.
Alicia parked her car and ran over to my side of the road. "Right here, this spot is 4.5 miles to the finish" I told her I might be able to break 12 hours. If I ran my ass off.
I ran my ass off.
The relayers were SCREAMING! "Woman solo! Woman solo! Your an inspiration! How do you do it? GO GO GO GO GO GO!" It was crazy fun. I was smiling so much my face was hurting!
I turned into the wooded finish area, about .5 mile left and knew that I was going to do it. Woohoo!
Oh my gosh, as I'm running into the finish, there is Bonnie. I couldn't believe it! She was clicking off pictures and clapping and yelling. She and her daughter had driven up and were able to watch Scott and I finish.
The announcer: And here's a solo..Julie Berg..from Big Lake..just ran 100K..congratulations!
11:53! Yeah hoo! I ran this race 2 years ago in 12:40.
It was awesome.
I felt really good. 4 minutes later, here came Scott, in 11:57! He broke 12 hours; a PR for him too. Woohoo!
We walked into Lake Superior and soaked our feet and legs. It had warmed to about 55 degrees, but by 5 PM it was cooling back down.
Bonnie went back to Minneapolis and I and Scott were treated to massages. It was fantastic.
What a wonderful day in the beautiful Minnesota northern woods.
***I brought along my camera; I didn't realize the battery was low. I did get 2 before pictures I'll post. Bonnie will be emailing me many that she took. I'll post those when they arrive.
Scott was running the 100K solo and Alicia was going to crew for us. I was pleasantly surprised to learn that she was planning on doting on me every bit as she was going to be there for Scott.
We attended the meeting, picked up our race packets and headed over to K's. We hadn't had dinner yet so we stopped at CUB FOODS and did a fair amount of shopping.
The three of us were able to have the guest house to ourselves. It was very nice; we set the alarms for 2 AM and dozed off to sleep.
2 AM and the wind was whipping! I could hear it blowing outside. Oh man, I just didn't want that. Luckily, the temperature was 48F, it was temperature was warmer than I had thought it would be.
We packed up all of our junk and headed off to the start line, in Finland, MN.
It was REAL windy. But REAL beautiful. The stars were so bright, up in the beautiful north woods. The moon was almost full; just spectacular. We were watching shooting stars. I asked the stars to guide me to the finish line without an injury. They obliged.
At 4 AM the sky was so bright that I didn't need a flashlight. I put in back into my bag and never did use it.
As I went to the port-a-potties I realized that I was definately going to put my wind pants on over my shorts. It was freezing! That wind was crazy, I'm glad I didn't know what the wind chill was, but I bet it was in the 20's.
5AM and were ready to roll. I had my iPod, food, clothes, etc. with Alicia in her car; she would follow us along the 62 mile course to the finish. She was going to pull over before each 5K aid station to see what we needed.
This is an interesting race. There are 100+ relay teams, consisting of 5-8 people. Each team has a vehicle, one person runs a 'leg' of the race at a time, hands off a baton to the next person, and so on. The team, in the vehicle, drives along the course.
For the solos; if you are lucky, you have a crew. That person will drive along the course and cater to your every whim. Alicia even bought us hot coffee at one point..just because we thought it would taste good at that moment. And it did!
You would think there would be a ton of traffic and chaos; but there isn't. It is very well run and quite organized. If one isn't up to the solo, I would certainly suggest one try the team relay.
OK, so 5AM and we are off! The solo runners are offered a 5 AM or 7 AM start. If you can finish in 10 hours, you are encouraged to take the 7 AM start.
As I was running along someone introduced himself as Brent. Here it was Brent from WI who posted on my blog a week or so ago. It was real neat to actually meet him in person. Brett finished in 11:15! An awesome first finish at the 100K distance! Congratulations, Brent.
I really struggled with my running the first 4-5 hours. My right thigh was hurting, it's never ached before and I was worried about having had the flu earlier in the week. My legs were dead. Just tired dead. I was thinking about all of the miles I have run this summer, all the races, TCM was just 2 weeks ago, well, duh, I should have tired legs. But I didn't want them this early in the day. I didn't feel like I had eaten enough carbs the night before, I didn't have my usual pasta feast. All of these things kept nagging at me.
Around 1.5 hours into the race I fell in back of Scott and just couldn't catch him. It was making me mad; not that he was in front of me, but that I could not catch him. He would run, then take a good long walk break, run again, walk break. I could make NO gain on him. I wasn't taking a walk break, I was running consistantly and could not catch him. Up the hill he'd go and I'd be trudging along trying to catch him.
I was lucky, eventually he waited for me to catch up. I think he was stretching and just decided to wait. I ran the next 45 miles with him! We would run a while, then walk, 'run to the passing sign', then take a walk break. He told me this is how he has always run this race-I figured I'd run along with him, he has 5 finishes here!
I think the walk breaks saved my legs. By miles 25-30 I was coming back, getting into what I call "The Julie Zone". I get into a place where nothing hurts, I have only happy thoughts and yeah, I'm going to finish this thing.
My Big Lake Run Club was doing the relay race out there. I was SO happy to see them along the course. It was awesome. They all piled out of their van, ran around me with hugs and candy, gave TONS of encouragement and piled back into their van, continuing up the road. I saw them out there a few times. Once I was so happy to see them I did a little dance.
I was feeling awesome.
Eventually it warmed up, I was able to give Alicia my pants, gloves and ear band. Thank goodness!
Just before 50K the 7AM starters began to catch us. It's so cool to see them. The winner from last years race was the first to pass us (he won this race, too). He moved along like a well oiled machine. I just can't imagine to be able to hold that pace. He finished in like 7 hours. Gah.
Somewhere along the course Scott told me his favorite part was coming up. We turned the corner and there was like a one mile rolling downhill. The sun was shining, the leaves were in their full color, the road went down, down, down; and you could see Lake Superior in all her splendor. It was beautiful. It took my breath away.
We ran and ran and ran..down, down and down. It was awesome. I think I smiled the whole way.
Scott has run the course .. and finished .. all five times. He knows it very well. He told me when each aid station was coming up, etc. It made it very nice. It was like I had a tour guide!
Alicia, as I said, was just fantastic. I told her at one stop that I'd like a sandwich, she'd pull ahead to the next 5K check point, walk across the highway and stand there, sandwich in hand, asking me what I'd like at the next check point. It truly was a treat.
At one point, near the end of the race I asked her for a potato chip. I and Scott had grabbed a handful from her earlier and they were really good. Sure enough, at the next aid point she had a baggie chips for me to carry along the course!
The last 18 miles of the course is run on Grandmas Marathon. I know that course very well, so it really surprised me that the course seemed so hilly yesterday! Of course, after running 50 miles I guess anything seems hilly.
I and Scott hit 50 miles at 9:45 or so. You know, when I run FANS, on pavement as well, it takes me almost 12 hours to get 50 miles. And there aren't any hills! This makes no sense to me. I suppose since I usually enter FANS for the 24 hour option, maybe I run slower. I don't know.
Shortly after the 50 mile mark Scott began doing calculations and figured maybe we could break 12 hours. I was feeling really good. I thought maybe we could. We ran/walked a while longer and Scott told me I should go ahead and break 12 hours. I thought about it a while and decided yeah, I'd give it a try.
I ran ahead, I felt sad to break away from Scott, I had really enjoyed running with him and he saved my legs. But I wanted to break 12. Off I went.
I asked Alicia for my iPod at the next station and rocked on for the finish line.
The relay runners make the ultra runners feel like rock stars. I had one group of relayers stand along the shoulder and do the WAVE as I ran by. They yelled and screamed at me and told me how awesome I was. It was incredible.
It was one big ego trip, those last 5 miles in.
Rick; an ultra runner friend of mine appeared around 55 miles. He ran the Glacial Trail 50K last week so wasn't running. It was so neat to run with him for a while. I had no idea he would be out on the course. He just wanted to offer his support.
I had 5 miles left. If I ran 11 minutes miles I would make it. I had been running 11 minute miles; I could do it. Maybe. If I didn't fall or puke or who knows. Anything could go wrong at this point.
Alicia parked her car and ran over to my side of the road. "Right here, this spot is 4.5 miles to the finish" I told her I might be able to break 12 hours. If I ran my ass off.
I ran my ass off.
The relayers were SCREAMING! "Woman solo! Woman solo! Your an inspiration! How do you do it? GO GO GO GO GO GO!" It was crazy fun. I was smiling so much my face was hurting!
I turned into the wooded finish area, about .5 mile left and knew that I was going to do it. Woohoo!
Oh my gosh, as I'm running into the finish, there is Bonnie. I couldn't believe it! She was clicking off pictures and clapping and yelling. She and her daughter had driven up and were able to watch Scott and I finish.
The announcer: And here's a solo..Julie Berg..from Big Lake..just ran 100K..congratulations!
11:53! Yeah hoo! I ran this race 2 years ago in 12:40.
It was awesome.
I felt really good. 4 minutes later, here came Scott, in 11:57! He broke 12 hours; a PR for him too. Woohoo!
We walked into Lake Superior and soaked our feet and legs. It had warmed to about 55 degrees, but by 5 PM it was cooling back down.
Bonnie went back to Minneapolis and I and Scott were treated to massages. It was fantastic.
What a wonderful day in the beautiful Minnesota northern woods.
***I brought along my camera; I didn't realize the battery was low. I did get 2 before pictures I'll post. Bonnie will be emailing me many that she took. I'll post those when they arrive.
Sunday, October 09, 2005
ED FITZ 100K
I ran my yesterday run today. I was scrunched for time yesterday so ran 5, today had more time so ran 10. The rivers are real high; Topaz went for a swim instead of just laying in the water. We've had torrential rains this past week.
It's a beautiful day today in Minnesota. When I hit the trail it was 40F, now it is up to 56F and sunny. The smell of fall is in the air, the leaves are changing, it is truly wonderful.
So while I was running this morning I began to think about Ed Fitz 100 K. The race is taking place next Saturday. I'm feeling good and recovered from Twin Cities Marathon last Sunday. Next week I'll feel even better.
I ran Ed Fitz 2 years ago; I had a crew of Ann and Bonnie. They met me at most of the aid stations every 5K to cater to my every whim. It was a great day. It was my first 100K and I finished in just under 13 hours. I ended up taking 3rd woman and won $150. Go figure!
Last year I caught a cold right after running Superior 50 Mile, I still had it while running TCM and by the time Ed Fitz came around it had turned into bronchitis so I never ran Ed Fitz. Bummer.
This year I'll be at the start. I don't have a crew though so that's the pits. I can have a drop bag at 50K so I'll put a few Myloplex bars and gels, maybe a sandwich or something in there for the half way point. I'll probably begin the race in pants, over shorts, then I can just pull the pants off and tie them around my waist until I get to my drop bag. That's kind of a pain. I'll have gloves, ear band, etc. I'll feel like a damn pack mule. I've even been thinking about wearing my camelback just to carry stuff, but oh, how I hate wearing that.
When I first began running ultras I used the camelback and I packed everything but the kitchen sink. During Ice Age 50 Mile it weighed 27 pounds. That's crazy!
I've since pared down a bit.
I really like my Nathan Sports 2 24 oz water bottle carrier. I'll probably just use that.
The aid stations at Ed Fitz mainly cater to the relay runners. They are many teams that run the 100K. My Big Lake Run Club will be up there with a team.
If you don't have anything to do next Saturday and would like to go for a drive in the great north woods, hey, maybe you want to spend 12 hours driving around, crewing for me?
I better check the weather forecast for next Saturday.
Enjoy today!
It's a beautiful day today in Minnesota. When I hit the trail it was 40F, now it is up to 56F and sunny. The smell of fall is in the air, the leaves are changing, it is truly wonderful.
So while I was running this morning I began to think about Ed Fitz 100 K. The race is taking place next Saturday. I'm feeling good and recovered from Twin Cities Marathon last Sunday. Next week I'll feel even better.
I ran Ed Fitz 2 years ago; I had a crew of Ann and Bonnie. They met me at most of the aid stations every 5K to cater to my every whim. It was a great day. It was my first 100K and I finished in just under 13 hours. I ended up taking 3rd woman and won $150. Go figure!
Last year I caught a cold right after running Superior 50 Mile, I still had it while running TCM and by the time Ed Fitz came around it had turned into bronchitis so I never ran Ed Fitz. Bummer.
This year I'll be at the start. I don't have a crew though so that's the pits. I can have a drop bag at 50K so I'll put a few Myloplex bars and gels, maybe a sandwich or something in there for the half way point. I'll probably begin the race in pants, over shorts, then I can just pull the pants off and tie them around my waist until I get to my drop bag. That's kind of a pain. I'll have gloves, ear band, etc. I'll feel like a damn pack mule. I've even been thinking about wearing my camelback just to carry stuff, but oh, how I hate wearing that.
When I first began running ultras I used the camelback and I packed everything but the kitchen sink. During Ice Age 50 Mile it weighed 27 pounds. That's crazy!
I've since pared down a bit.
I really like my Nathan Sports 2 24 oz water bottle carrier. I'll probably just use that.
The aid stations at Ed Fitz mainly cater to the relay runners. They are many teams that run the 100K. My Big Lake Run Club will be up there with a team.
If you don't have anything to do next Saturday and would like to go for a drive in the great north woods, hey, maybe you want to spend 12 hours driving around, crewing for me?
I better check the weather forecast for next Saturday.
Enjoy today!
Monday, October 03, 2005
Sunday, October 02, 2005
Not Boston Bound :(
Hi there,
Below is a copy of my race report to my ultra running group. I didn't do it today. I did not have what it took to qualify. I'm ok with that (like I have a choice in the matter-well, I suppose I could be pissed, I'm not)as I gave it all that I had today. I could not hold the pace. Man it was hard!!
Thanks for all of your encouragement and support while I was training for this buggar! I appreciate that so much.
Sometimes days just go like this and we have to learn from them :)
I'll post some pics in a bit.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
TCM was tough tough tough for me.
Last June I pr'd at Grandmas in 3:59:58 and this surprised me greatly. I had never broken the 4 hour barrier.
I then hatched the great idea of trying to qualify for Boston at TCM by running a 3:50.
I trained hard these past few months. I began to run at the track, running Yasso 800's in 3:40-3:45. I started with 3 and worked my way up to a dozen. I began to run tempo workouts as well, these are two workouts that I've never incorporated into my training before because, well, running faster than what I was used to, hurt. Plain and simple.
The speed workouts and losing some weight helped to quicken my ultra distances. I began to PR at the 50K and 50 mile distances.
I thought I could run a 350 today, maybe even a 345.
Wrong.
I drove over to Ann's this morning. I was so lucky to again be able to ride with Ann, her hubby Fred and son Kyle. Kyle entertained me all the way there .. and back. He's a funny little energetic 7 (I think) year old that reminds me of how my boys were at his age.
After we were dropped off at the Dome we stood around in lines, met up with friends and then I was ready to find my pacing group.
I thought I had plenty of time to find them. Wrong again. 20 minutes prior to start and the chutes were already crammed and full. I pushed my way up to the 445's and stopped dead. Oh well, I figured I'd catch them soon enough. Wrong again.
We were off and running. I crossed the start and tried to find my group. I spoke with Val from Voyageur, whom I and Jeffrey ran with at V for quite some time, it was awesome to see her again.
1 mile down and I still hadn't caught the 350 pace group. 1 mile: 7:34. Not good, way too fast. Mile 2 and I still hadn't caught them! Not good again: 7:56. Mile 3 and finally caught them. Mile 3: 8:00. This was bad. Way too fast for me. In retrospect I SHOULD have just run my miles off of my pace band but at the time I was hell bent on catching the group. (another lesson learned) I was out of breath, hot and dry.
I realized that I should have been carrying my ultra pack with the 2 24 oz bottles. Heck, I always train with this and I always drink 24 oz an hour. That's what my body is used to. Why didn't I have it? (another lesson learned). I was having trouble sustaining on the 3-5oz cups of water, even though I was trying to chug as many as I could.
At mile 10 I was at 3:45 pace. I was pretty excited about that, but not excited about the way my quads were cramping. I've never had cramping in my muscles. Never.
I was doing electrolyte caps, did a gel, more water at the aid station..then guess what. Another first and bad move. I missed an aid station! I thought there was only one table that I passed, I guess I must have passed a few more because all of sudden I realized the water tables were gone and I hadn't had anything to drink. (another lesson learned)
Mile 13 and holding onto the 345 pace but fading fast. I could feel it fading.
Mile 16 and holding to the 350 group..then I had to make a pit stop. Yeah. Of course.
Mile 19 and I fell. Yeah, fell during a marathon on asphalt. No roots, no rocks! I was running along and didn't notice (wasn't looking I guess..duh) the guy with the rake in front of me, raking out the cups and runner debris. My toe hooked the rake and BAM. Face plant. Scratched my sunglasses, the hat flew off but I was OK. I caused a collision in back of me. It was the pits. My iPod shot out of its case on my arm and slid a ways. I probably would have laughed it I wasn't feeling so lousy and hot and dry and crampy in my quads.
Mile 20 and I'm falling off of 350 pace. Mile 21 took me 10 minutes. I just want this over with.
Then I changed my attitude. I was going to finish and I was going to have fun. I couldn't qualify for Boston today but I could at least enjoy the marathon, enjoy the spectators and enjoy the other runners. There was no way I could keep the 350 pace. That was real fast and real tough for me to hold. I was going to finish the race in 10 minute miles, around 4 hours and enjoy the surroundings. I could not go any faster.
I enjoyed the spectators. I saw members of my Big Lake run club: Kevin and Ken were loud and encouraging! I saw Jo, Don and Chris and the girls; I kept seeing Marie's Tom over and over again! It was so much fun finding spectators that I recognized.
My legs were heavy and tired. Man they were tired. I was running as FAST as I could and I could not break a 930 mile this last section. I'm sure I didn't.
I was running my best, doing what I could do today and it was not good enough for a Boston qualifier. It was just not good enough. It was the best I could do today. The best I could, that's all I could give and I'm happy with that.
My watch time was 4:02, I think the race clock said 4:08. A TCM pr for me.
At the finish line I was able to watch Ann run in, it was fun to see her finish! A PR for Ann. Woohoo!! We hobbled to the changing tents and who was there but Leslie from Voyaguer! A gal I and Jeffrey ran with for a while. I never did see Val from V again.
Leslie left behind a container full of wet wipes. Ahh, how good it felt to wipe the salt from our face! The little things in life!!
Kyle entertained me all the way back to Ann's. All in all, it was a great day!
There were many of the MN-DRS out there, don't let me be the only one to talk about the day:)
Julie Berg
Big Lake
Below is a copy of my race report to my ultra running group. I didn't do it today. I did not have what it took to qualify. I'm ok with that (like I have a choice in the matter-well, I suppose I could be pissed, I'm not)as I gave it all that I had today. I could not hold the pace. Man it was hard!!
Thanks for all of your encouragement and support while I was training for this buggar! I appreciate that so much.
Sometimes days just go like this and we have to learn from them :)
I'll post some pics in a bit.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
TCM was tough tough tough for me.
Last June I pr'd at Grandmas in 3:59:58 and this surprised me greatly. I had never broken the 4 hour barrier.
I then hatched the great idea of trying to qualify for Boston at TCM by running a 3:50.
I trained hard these past few months. I began to run at the track, running Yasso 800's in 3:40-3:45. I started with 3 and worked my way up to a dozen. I began to run tempo workouts as well, these are two workouts that I've never incorporated into my training before because, well, running faster than what I was used to, hurt. Plain and simple.
The speed workouts and losing some weight helped to quicken my ultra distances. I began to PR at the 50K and 50 mile distances.
I thought I could run a 350 today, maybe even a 345.
Wrong.
I drove over to Ann's this morning. I was so lucky to again be able to ride with Ann, her hubby Fred and son Kyle. Kyle entertained me all the way there .. and back. He's a funny little energetic 7 (I think) year old that reminds me of how my boys were at his age.
After we were dropped off at the Dome we stood around in lines, met up with friends and then I was ready to find my pacing group.
I thought I had plenty of time to find them. Wrong again. 20 minutes prior to start and the chutes were already crammed and full. I pushed my way up to the 445's and stopped dead. Oh well, I figured I'd catch them soon enough. Wrong again.
We were off and running. I crossed the start and tried to find my group. I spoke with Val from Voyageur, whom I and Jeffrey ran with at V for quite some time, it was awesome to see her again.
1 mile down and I still hadn't caught the 350 pace group. 1 mile: 7:34. Not good, way too fast. Mile 2 and I still hadn't caught them! Not good again: 7:56. Mile 3 and finally caught them. Mile 3: 8:00. This was bad. Way too fast for me. In retrospect I SHOULD have just run my miles off of my pace band but at the time I was hell bent on catching the group. (another lesson learned) I was out of breath, hot and dry.
I realized that I should have been carrying my ultra pack with the 2 24 oz bottles. Heck, I always train with this and I always drink 24 oz an hour. That's what my body is used to. Why didn't I have it? (another lesson learned). I was having trouble sustaining on the 3-5oz cups of water, even though I was trying to chug as many as I could.
At mile 10 I was at 3:45 pace. I was pretty excited about that, but not excited about the way my quads were cramping. I've never had cramping in my muscles. Never.
I was doing electrolyte caps, did a gel, more water at the aid station..then guess what. Another first and bad move. I missed an aid station! I thought there was only one table that I passed, I guess I must have passed a few more because all of sudden I realized the water tables were gone and I hadn't had anything to drink. (another lesson learned)
Mile 13 and holding onto the 345 pace but fading fast. I could feel it fading.
Mile 16 and holding to the 350 group..then I had to make a pit stop. Yeah. Of course.
Mile 19 and I fell. Yeah, fell during a marathon on asphalt. No roots, no rocks! I was running along and didn't notice (wasn't looking I guess..duh) the guy with the rake in front of me, raking out the cups and runner debris. My toe hooked the rake and BAM. Face plant. Scratched my sunglasses, the hat flew off but I was OK. I caused a collision in back of me. It was the pits. My iPod shot out of its case on my arm and slid a ways. I probably would have laughed it I wasn't feeling so lousy and hot and dry and crampy in my quads.
Mile 20 and I'm falling off of 350 pace. Mile 21 took me 10 minutes. I just want this over with.
Then I changed my attitude. I was going to finish and I was going to have fun. I couldn't qualify for Boston today but I could at least enjoy the marathon, enjoy the spectators and enjoy the other runners. There was no way I could keep the 350 pace. That was real fast and real tough for me to hold. I was going to finish the race in 10 minute miles, around 4 hours and enjoy the surroundings. I could not go any faster.
I enjoyed the spectators. I saw members of my Big Lake run club: Kevin and Ken were loud and encouraging! I saw Jo, Don and Chris and the girls; I kept seeing Marie's Tom over and over again! It was so much fun finding spectators that I recognized.
My legs were heavy and tired. Man they were tired. I was running as FAST as I could and I could not break a 930 mile this last section. I'm sure I didn't.
I was running my best, doing what I could do today and it was not good enough for a Boston qualifier. It was just not good enough. It was the best I could do today. The best I could, that's all I could give and I'm happy with that.
My watch time was 4:02, I think the race clock said 4:08. A TCM pr for me.
At the finish line I was able to watch Ann run in, it was fun to see her finish! A PR for Ann. Woohoo!! We hobbled to the changing tents and who was there but Leslie from Voyaguer! A gal I and Jeffrey ran with for a while. I never did see Val from V again.
Leslie left behind a container full of wet wipes. Ahh, how good it felt to wipe the salt from our face! The little things in life!!
Kyle entertained me all the way back to Ann's. All in all, it was a great day!
There were many of the MN-DRS out there, don't let me be the only one to talk about the day:)
Julie Berg
Big Lake
Saturday, October 01, 2005
Expo-ing
This morning I wasn't going to run. I really wasn't. I was going to take a day off. But when I woke up it was 55 degrees out; a beautiful morning, we won't be having many more mornings like this in Minnesota..for a long long time.
What's a gal to do?
I had until 930 before I had to be home to do the football goings-on. I grabbed my running clothes and I and Topaz were out the door and driving to the trail.
It was a fabulous 3 mile run. Short and sweet. I didn't feel like a beached whale; I felt sharp and focused. Just what I needed.
Off to the football game where Troy's team won 25-6. Yippee!
I and Marie were off to the Twin Cities Marathon Expo. Neither I nor Marie are big shoppers. We just kind of mill around, aisle after aisle-looking for the free stuff. Today I came home with many free items, even Fresca pop. 6 cans! Unreal. Plus Listermint strips (do runners have bad breath?), chapsticks, cereal samples and a whole lot of unimportant flyers and papers that I tossed out.
Oh yeah, and a Clif Pace Team 3:45 wrist band..gulp.
I decided not to try immodium since I haven't tried it in training. I'm going to try something else. I and Ann aren't leaving until 6 AM so I have plenty of time to go for a little pre-run, a warmer upper of sorts. I'll hop on my treadmill for a mile or so..then I'll have to go..for sure..it happens every time.
The forecast for tomorrow is 65F start time and 86F for a high. My kind of running temps. I much rather have warm than cool and rainy.
If you are out on the course tomorrow I'll have on black shorts, pink sleeveless top-that may be tied around my waist showing a multi pink/black jog bra, white/purple Montrail "Run Like A Girl" hat. Number 3980. I hope to see you!
Over and out...
What's a gal to do?
I had until 930 before I had to be home to do the football goings-on. I grabbed my running clothes and I and Topaz were out the door and driving to the trail.
It was a fabulous 3 mile run. Short and sweet. I didn't feel like a beached whale; I felt sharp and focused. Just what I needed.
Off to the football game where Troy's team won 25-6. Yippee!
I and Marie were off to the Twin Cities Marathon Expo. Neither I nor Marie are big shoppers. We just kind of mill around, aisle after aisle-looking for the free stuff. Today I came home with many free items, even Fresca pop. 6 cans! Unreal. Plus Listermint strips (do runners have bad breath?), chapsticks, cereal samples and a whole lot of unimportant flyers and papers that I tossed out.
Oh yeah, and a Clif Pace Team 3:45 wrist band..gulp.
I decided not to try immodium since I haven't tried it in training. I'm going to try something else. I and Ann aren't leaving until 6 AM so I have plenty of time to go for a little pre-run, a warmer upper of sorts. I'll hop on my treadmill for a mile or so..then I'll have to go..for sure..it happens every time.
The forecast for tomorrow is 65F start time and 86F for a high. My kind of running temps. I much rather have warm than cool and rainy.
If you are out on the course tomorrow I'll have on black shorts, pink sleeveless top-that may be tied around my waist showing a multi pink/black jog bra, white/purple Montrail "Run Like A Girl" hat. Number 3980. I hope to see you!
Over and out...
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)