Ultramarathon

I've thought for a while that people that run ultramarathons have something a little wrong with them.  I decided to see just how crazy they are by running one myself.  A month ago, a friend told me on Wed that there was an ultramarathon near my house on Sat.  I had no idea!  - and a race so small that it depends on word of mouth to attract athletes is appealing to me - in fact could not be passed up.    That race was laps of a 10 K course through the woods and featured a challenging section of rolling single track and enough ice that you had to wear spikes or Yaktrax on your shoes to avoid slipping around.  I missed the start after I went back to the car to get my Yaktrax.  My friend and I started at the back.  Easy jog, he knew many of the other runners and we had a chatty first lap.  Lap number 2, steady easy pace - I got ahead of my friend in the singletrack and kept going, picked the pace up a bit.  I saw that a dog was running in the race, dog and runner were wearing harnesses and connected by a line.  Patrick and Mocha were waiting in the woods to say hi.  Lap 3, I couldn't see anyone ahead of me for some sections of the course and a few people passed me.  I passed some others.  The rolling single track took some effort, even at the slow pace - and I saw some people walking on it.  Not the leader of the race.  He passed me on the singletrack going so fast he slid through some of the corners.  The straight and flat section seemed to have stretched somehow - when did it end?    I had intended to run 3 laps, but I was going so slowly, it seemed like an opportunity to push for a mental challenge - heck I've been nothing but lazy for months now - many other people were running another lap.  Lap 4, alone for most of it and super slow.  Passed by a solid looking woman wearing a camelback - not just passed- left in the dust actually.  I did pass a old man with a flowing white beard and a dog that was running off leash in the race.  Chug chug - chatted with another runner -and was pretty happy when the parking lot came around again.  Good luck to those making the final lap- I thought I would have walked some sections had I kept going.

Last weekend we made an early morning trip to the Cape for a 50 K race on the beach.  That is an event that warrants more preparation that I put into it (none).  The race started on a cold beach - temps in the 20s and into the wind.  This was not the beach running I've done before (on a solid surface, for a half mile, years ago).  It was a rocky beach with plenty of loose deep sand - and the sections that weren't on the beach were on a road that had a surface or loose sand or rocks - not much better at all- except no wind on the road.  The race was 2 loops of a figure 8 type of course.  When we approached the first turn on the course, the leader was about a quarter mile ahead of me.  A few miles later and I could barely see anyone ahead of me.  I had to stop for a break in the bushes and quite a few people passed - so I had someone to look at again.  On we went, past beach houses - again I couldn't see anyone ahead by the footprints did indicate I was on course.  It was peaceful, nice back there in the dunes.  I had run out of food and water but surely we were close to the car and start of the 2nd lap was coming up.  To the contrary, about 5 miles on the beach into the wind stood between me and the car.  What a slog!  Sand was in my shoes, I was depleted, and motivation was in question.  I had come here because I like the beach - ha!  the beach was out to show me what brutal unforgiving force nature is.  I was thrilled to reach the parking lot and ate some soup with others that were finishing after only one lap.  I told Patrick about how hard it was to run on sand while dumping my shoes.  The 2nd lap was slow and more like hiking than running.  I later found out that I had been the 1st woman until about mile 20 - when I was left in the dust by the leader.   It allowed for plenty of thought and reflection.  Especially the long finish stretch on the beach - that really had some surreal aspects - run to the horizon on sand - it seemed like a dream.  The next person ahead of me was barely in sight - and pulling away farther as time went by.  It was not clear where on the beach the finish actually was - someone out there.  I ran the last mile or so with Mocha on a leash.  Mocha finished an ultramarathon!