I have recapped and covered and gone over the Heartland races again and again. Not to sound dramatic. I have been over these races before, though. The route hasn’t changed. The course hasn’t changed much. The hills are hillier. The rocks are rockier. So the technical, descriptive part of this recap ought to be brief.
The weather was perfect on May 3rd. A brisk, calm, and clear 48⁰ in Cassoday, Kansas. Sydney and I were well-rested and ready after a great night’s sleep in El Dorado. There was a little tension as we realized we left our drop bags in the hotel. PANIC! It was fine, though. Our friends Jennie and Dusty were there, and Dusty drove back to our hotel, grabbed our stuff, and drove back to have it all waiting for us at Lapland aid station. A real hero! HOORAY!!!
Sydney ran the 50k with a friend, Gay Ann. I wasn’t worried about her finishing at all. I hoped she would have a lot of fun, and she did.
I ran the 50
I found our friend Ben right away, at packet pick-up. We saw Ben doing a long run the week before and he told us his strategy for the race. He intended to run intervals of 3 minutes running and 1 minute walking. He even programmed his watch to alert with the tempo change. I thought that sounded like a good interval, so I copied it exactly. Still, I had every intention of hanging out with Ben the entire race. He’s a very strong runner. I hoped to pace off of him to a new personal record.
After about a mile of jogging along and chit-chatting we caught up to Jennie. We filled her in on the race plan and she loved the idea. We decided immediately to team up and run together. It was the best idea I’ve ever been a part of!
The team-up was especially helpful because I didn’t have any crew out there. I didn’t need one. The aid stations are few and far, but well managed. The food was top-notch. Hydration options were water and Gatorade. I opted to use just store-brand bottled water to start and reused the bottles all day. It worked okay. The bottles were crushed by the end. If I do that again I’ll use more bottles.
The three of us kept each other on track. Pushed, encouraged, and backed off the pace like professionals. Or enthusiastic amateurs. I brought up the idea of teaming up again for Badwater Salton Sea. Everyone was up for it at the time.
The real star of the race was the location. I finally got to see the Flint Hills in ideal weather. It is beautiful out there! Stunning! People compare it to a screen saver. Photos don’t do it justice. The majesty of it defies description. Even later in the race, when we were trying to keep it together, the magnificence of where we had been lingered.
There were laughs the entire time, which is another plus for running in a group. For example, we only had five miles to go for about eight miles. Lol! And every hill was the last hill. That’s never true!
The route is a bit over 50 miles, so “technically” we did 50 miles in under 10 hours. My actual finish time for the race is 10:08:25. I think that’s really good. We all crossed the finish line together, which is very special. And we had finish line beers, which is just the best!
Overall, I was very happy with the event. The intervals are the way to go. I can’t thank Ben, Jen, and Dusty enough for everything they did out there. I will run with them anytime!
So, after 17 weeks, I completed the Garmin Connect 5k training plan. My “A” race, the Gobbler Grind 5k 10k & Half marathon put on by the runners edge race company, went really well. I felt great and performed beyond what the training plan predicted.
The garmin Connect phone app works with the garmin smart watch. Workouts are sent to the watch, and supposedly, they use feedback from workouts to customize the training. I didn’t notice anything like that. I enjoyed having a workout right there on the watch.
After the slam, while helping Sydney train for her 100-mile race, I decided to try a fast 5k. You know, just to train for something. My personal best time for that distance, according to athlinks, is a little over 18 minutes. Forget that! I was hoping (secretly) to get somewhere in the 20th minute. The training plan only went down to 22 minutes. That’s pretty close and very fast. So that’s where I set the training goal.
17 weeks is a long training block. For comparison, most intermediate to advanced marathon training plans are 12-16 weeks. So I’m training for a little longer than a long marathon training plan to run about an eighth of the distance. But I’m a slow old guy, so it makes sense.
On November 9th, I ran the Veteran’s Day 5k in Parkville in 22:39 seconds. That was fast enough to win the men’s master’s division. I almost ended the training there. I was encouraged by Sydney and the training plan to finish with the goal race. I felt like i should at least try for my secret target time. And two weeks is plenty of time to cram some good training in.
Throughout training, I had been skipping some key workouts. Hill repeats, spring intervals, tempo runs… all the workouts designed to improve overall speed. I really didn’t deserve the good results. I was really hitting the strength training. I was doing really well with the nutrition. Maybe if I had made up those workouts, I would have hit the 20-minute mark.
Gobbler Grind is a very popular race. The route winds through corporate woods business park and the surrounding neighborhoods. The runners edge doesn’t offer very many races throughout the year, but what they do offer is usually very well run. This event was great, overall, but there were some issues.
The start/finish area was in a different spot than usual. That isn’t a big deal. Unfortunately, because of the placement, fast 5k finishers were crossing the route of the half marathon. Seemed pretty dangerous, yet hilarious as long as nobody got hurt.
There were the usual race sponsors at the finish line festival. A massage place, supplement superstore, fleet feet shoe store. There was also a food tent, offering great breakfast food for sale. I’ve got no problem with people selling food, but i didn’t know about it until I got there. I would have brought some money. Lucky for me, Sydney is okay with being a sugar momma sometimes and hooked me up with some breakfast tacos. They were delicious and totally worth the cost.
We tried looking up my results after I finished so I could avoid standing in line at the results table. With a big race like this, even my p.r. isn’t enough for any awards. I don’t mind. It’s neat to win, but I’m racing the clock. Anyways, the results weren’t showing online, so I stood in line. Just to see. Sydney had a feeling I probably won something. I did. I finished in 21:20, which won 2nd in my age group! I was a little off from my secret goal of 20:xx. I was way ahead of the training goal of 22:xx. I had a lot of fun training and running. So I feel like a winner.
This was a fun one. Getting to the start line was rough! There are warnings all over the literature for this race about flat tires. The roads are sharp rocks and gravel, watch out! Sydney and I were very nervous about it. We drove down the weekend prior for a dry run. Let her have some practice finding the aid stations. That paid off tremendously! She wound up being a little bit of a pathfinder for the other race crews. 😁
My name came up to work mandatory Saturday overtime, and there is really no room for compromise there. Luckily, I had already scheduled the weekend off! So I guess I’m a little more prepared than I like to believe.
We went down to packet pickup Friday afternoon. Sydney got some more detailed driving directions. There was a malfunction at the tollbooth in El Dorado, where we stayed that weekend. Our room was amazing, by the way. Days Inn was great! We slept like logs.
Early race morning things got hairy. We didn’t get a toll ticket in El Dorado. There was a lineup at the tollbooth in Cassoday. I took off my vest and jumped out to see what the problem was. It ended up being nothing, but now we were running behind, and I had to check in. Check-in is at race hq/finish line. The start line is about a half mile down the road from there. We just make it. I tell Sydney I’ve lost a bottle. It could only be at race hq, that’s the only time I wore the vest outside the car. She said she’d look for it. I went to get my pre-race photo. People kept jumping in front of me. Elden,the race director, kept yelling out the time until start. The Runner’s Church preacher was there, trying to pray right into God’s ear, just as loud as he can get. It was very frustrating!
Also, I was pretty nervous. 3 weeks is not a lot of turnaround time. I feel like I did the best I could. I felt okay, but I’ve done enough of these now to worry about mile 63 right at the start.
My plan, as always, was to go easy. Take it easy, take the whole time, and get to the halfway mark before dark.
Heartland, I thought, should be ideal for taking it easy. It’s got rolling hills and very pretty views throughout the race. And gravel. Big, chunky, tire-shredding gravel.
The gravel roads I sort of remember from doing the 50 miler in the spring. I might have blogged about it. They tore my feet up then, and they tore my feet up this time. There might be a practical solution to the foot problem. The only thing I can think of is “get tougher feet.”
Sydney found my lost bottle at the Cassoday tollbooth! That was a very lucky break. We hooked back up at the second manned aid station. I got to pet a dog and eat some snackies. It was a bit unsettling because they moved the aid station since the spring race. I came over a hill expecting a celebration and only found a sad little sign with an arrow pointing uphill.
This was also when the wind started blowing right at the front of me. It was at my back for the first and last 16 miles. So for about 100k, it was rock & roll and heavy winds in my face.
The aid stations were all pretty good. Standard ultra foods, tents to get out of the wind, friendly-ish volunteers. I had 3 burgers during my run. That doesn’t sound like a lot right here, but at the time, I felt like the hamburgler or Jughead.
I got to Matfield Green Aid Station, the last manned aid station before the turnaround, in really good shape. The trailhawks ran this aid station, and it was my good friend Eric volunteering! They had good ramen (spaghetti soup) and potatoes, but no forks. 😳
Crossing a flyover above I-35 on my way to Lone Tree Aid station and turning around, I got a semi truck to honk. Still fun as a grown up! There’s an unmanned aid station with water and Vaseline and very little direction. I lubed under my arms, where I had a hot spot going and jogged down the road. The course was well marked, I’m just very bad at looking. I knew I was going the correct way, though, because I saw more runners on this little 3 mile stretch than I had seen so far all day. Right then, at that moment, it occurred to me that I had not brought a headlamp. I made it before dark, but just before. So I was hoofing it out of there, trying to get as close to the aid station as possible before “dark” dark.
When I got back to Matfield Green, Jamie and her kid had shown up to help the crew, and Kirby was there, ready to pace me. The new faces re-energized me!
Kirby was a great pacer! We talked about her running goals (a marathon in Febuary! Killer!) And childhood road games. I am so glad she told me about “my cows!”
After Kirby, Coach Randy took over. He carried me all the way back to Cassoday. Figuratively. We were doing consistent and fast intervals and also used the terrain to help maintain a real nice pace. Not too fast! Not too slow. We did pick it up whenever we saw another runner (soul-taking? Lol!)
The funny story: Randy and I are passing “the Runner’s church” preacher and he tells us “don’t miss this turn coming up.”
So we cross an unmarked cattle guard, and Randy says, “I think we missed that turn.” After some quick math and a review of the strava heat map we decide yes. We did miss that turn we were specifically told about. And we also got passed by 3 racers! Grr! Not that I’m competitive. 😉
As we make our way to battle creek, the first/last manned aid station, we change up the intervals. 1:30 run 1:30 walk. Just a 30 second change, you might say? Plank for 30 seconds.
Battle Creek is special to me because my friend Scott “KSdirtrunner” is the one manning it the entire weekend! I just met him last year when I volunteered at this event and he has been an inspiration to me ever since.
The longest 8 miles in the world are between Battle Creek and the Cassoday Community Center parking lot. Randy and I are doing our thing…1:30 run, maybe 11 or 12 minute pace, 1:30 walk. Power hike! I have been practicing, and it did pay off. We passed some guys who were really suffering through the chilly morning.
We were approaching the end of the gravel when Rick from mile 90 pulled up and started taking pics. Randy and I agree, you do NOT walk in a race photo.
NOT walking!
Also, we could see Syd and Kirby stalking us from the paved roads, so I felt some pressure to go ahead and finish this thang!
We’re jogging the last 8/10 of a mile to the finish. I had told Randy the finish line strategy of start jogging at the stop sign, slowly build speed until I sprint into the finish. He asks me what the elapsed time is, and I tell him, “26:57 and change.”
He says, “Don’t you want to beat 27 hours?”
I ran. I sprinted in and finished at 26:59:18!
Afterward, it was coffee, a massage from Happy Hawk, and a table nap before a bath, a proper nap, and the long ride home.
100 miles is a long way. I mean, it’s far. It’s far enough to use as an excuse. Like: I would go, but it’s 100 miles away.
Ultrapalooza is a running event put on by our friends, Midwest Endurance Race Company. The same group that brought us the Kansas City Last Man Standing event, Miola Madness series of fixed time events, and the Mile 0 run. They do a great job with their events, and Ultrapalooza is no different.
There are 5 distances available to race at ultrapalooza: 50k, 50 mile, 100k, 100 mile, and 1/2 marathon. I was doing the 100 mile as part of my attempt at the grand slam of Kansas ultrarunning super slam. I had friends running in just about every other distance.
A couple of notable ones:
Kerrie ran her 100th half marathon. Apparently, her finish was amazing! I wasn’t there. I was on the trail, trying to run 100 miles.
Adam had intended to run his first 100 kilometer race there at ultrapalooza. He has been doing amazing things lately (the hawk trail marathon and pike’s peak marathon,) but life takes a toll. He dropped down to the 50k and did amazing! I hope his foot pain is temporary. He told me about it as he passed me on the trail, twice, while I was trying to run 100 miles.
Our friend and regular pacer David “Bootsy” Boots ran his first 100k. He did amazing, even though he told me he was seriously undertrained. We saw each other a couple of times on the trail while I tried to run 100 miles.
Sydney’s coach Randy ran the 50-mile race. I mean, he RAN 50 miles. At the start line, he gave me solid advice: “don’t follow me” lol! And I didn’t. I had a plan(ish). I saw him on his way BACK from the turnaround. He was flying! I was trying to run 100 miles.
I did, by the way. I ran 100 miles at ultrapalooza. It took 28 hours. It was really hard. I did it with the help and support of a couple of amazing pacers and my girlfriend, crew chief, and H.B.I.C., Sydney.
The entire weekend was a fun, trippy, unbelievable experience. Syd and I drove down Friday afternoon for packet pickup. The entire main street through Osawatame was ripped up for some sort of project.
Crew chief Sydney as the “I” in mile zero.
Saturday morning, we made it to the start just in time. It’s funny to me how much I have to hurry at the start of these things. The shortest distance takes over an hour. We should be allowed a bit of a grace period at the front end. Maybe there would be, I hate being late, so I’ll probably never test it.
The forecast called for thunderstorms. Luckily I was moving too slow and missed the heavy rain, hail, and lightning. Gay Ann got some awesome video of a lightning show in the distance overnight.
Besides lightning, there was a lot of animal activity through the night. I saw a couple of opossum, some armadillo (possum on the half shell), deer, frogs, and an owl. The noise and being sprayed by something really freaked out my pacer Jeff and me! All the action settled down after he started blasting 80’s hits from his mobile. We agree that music without headphones is gauche, but since we were the only people left out there, it would probably be okay in this instance.
Yes, I was the last runner to finish. I’m okay with it. I wasn’t going slow, according to the stats. In fact, this is my second or third fastest 100 miler. And “last” was still 2nd place. I got a really nice framed print. It’s on the mantle.
Ultrapalooza was on the same weekend as some other popular races. So I didn’t have a lot of crew or pacers. I don’t mind. I understand there are only so many weekends. I hardly ever volunteered before this challenge. I will after, for sure!
So between the heat, humidity, lightning, limited support, and active wildlife… I think it went pretty well.
The kansas city backyard ultra, a last man standing event with fixed time races, was a great event! I am so happy I had a chance to run with the amazing athletes in the last man standing event.
As of this writing, the official results are not posted. I feel like I ran about 22 miles. (Update: 31 miles) Not super impressive, I know. There are a ton of excuses. I really don’t want to get into it too much.
7 p.m., the Night of August 11, 2023, when the last man standing event started, the temperature was very much in the eighties with humidity right up there with it. The air was thick, with the promise of rain. The course was a little more than a mile around Mill Creek Park, a neat, grassy park east of the plaza in K.C. MO. If you’ve seen a chiefs game on t.v., think of the fountain with the horses.
I had rented a table and canopy from Midwest Endurance to keep my stuff and use it as a kind of base. Sydney was there for the start and a few laps before going home to get ready to run the 3 hour event in the morning.
The check-in tent and aid station were all set up on the south end of the park. Sam and Jennie gave a quick rundown of the course and the rules. I was surprised by a few things:
They extended the loop to include a section of sidewalk and an out and back over some grass.
There was no aid allowed during a loop, even though we run by the start area 4 times and there’s a water fountain on the course.
This race was starting to sound really tough!
We started right at 7. I went out way too fast, running in the 8 minute range. I expected that and figured I would settle down after a lap or 2.
As a counterpoint, Randy and most of the other runners were going at a nice, easy 12 minute average with plenty of walking.
I was having a pretty miserable time. I have a bad whinging problem, so I will try to keep this part brief. I was soaked through with sweat from the beginning. There was no relief. I was sweating through my shoes. Sydney asked how she could help, and I told her, “I dont want to be wet anymore.”
Our friend Emily brought her girls out to cheer for a while, and that gave me a real boost! I ran up and gave them all a big sweaty hug! Then I ran another loop.
I will never get it straight. It was either 4 LOOPS = 1 lap, or 4 LAPS = 1 loop. Whichever way you say it, it was a lot of times around. The east side of the track was more elevated, with no breeze. The north end had a (kind of) steep downhill to the grassy out and back. The west side ran along Broadway and had a nice breeze. The corral/start/finish/lap had a timing mat and digital clock showing the time.
The loop right after Sydney left for the night, that was where it all fell apart. The insole of my left shoe got squished up. I had to stop and straighten it out. Two steps later, it was squished under my foot again, but now I was behind schedule and still had 2 laps to go! I finished with 5 minutes to get myself together. I managed to change shoes. Jennie helped get my bottles filled and gave me a little pep talk. The next loop went a lot better.
That’s one of the cool things about this format. You can have a terrible loop. The next hour is a whole new thing. I put the bad loop out of my mind and tried to focus on just running.
All the other runners were very cool and supportive. There was a lot of grouping up and pacing together. I only heard supportive comments from everyone.
At the start of the 2:00 a.m. loop, I was gassed. I didn’t have any more. I told Jennie I was going to line up, but I would probably be timed out. I finished the second lap at 2:37 and dropped out. Everybody told me it was the smart move. I’m okay with it.
So that’s the end of my story. About 18 hours later Randy Taylor did a final loop to secure a much deserved, hard earned victory. Outlasted every one of the last runner standing competitors AND fixed time runners. He is a stud!
Sydney did 12 miles in 3 hours, like a boss!
David Boots was there overnight running the timing mat. I was able to hang out with him a bit after I dropped. He’s going to pace me again at the Hawk 100.
Midwest Endurance Race Company put on another fantastic event! I look forward to Ultrapalooza in September and Miola Madness in November.
This event was tough and humbling. I learned a lot from the experience. Hopefully, it will help me become a better runner and, just maybe, a better blogger. 😉
Spencer C. Duncan Make It Count 5k is a flat, fast, exciting, and emotional race in Gardner, Kansas. The race benefits the Spencer C. Duncan make it count foundation. You can learn all about it at: https://makeitcounttoday.org/
Lately, I have been trying to get selective about my racing. I’m trying to take it easy on my body AND my wallet. The Spencer C Duncan 5k is free to veterans. I (obviously) don’t mind a little bit of a drive for a free race. I managed to talk Sydney into signing up, too!
Before the race, we discussed our strategy. Sydney told me she didn’t mind if I wanted to “fly,” meaning run off without her. I do like to get competitive and race and start off way too fast. It’s fun for me. This time, though, I wanted to run with Syd. I wanted to encourage and relax and just have fun.
Running with Sydney, I was still able to goof around with some running friends. Some of them ran some fun events that I had to miss.
Gay Ann had run the first night of “The Night Train,” a 2 night combo event that sounds special made for me. The Night Train Night 1 was a fixed-time event, and night 2 is a set distance event. Great swag, including a special gift for doing both nights, really tempted me. I was strong enough to resist, but not so strong as to not be jealous. Gay Ann is doing both nights, of course, and still killed it at the Spencer Duncan 5k. She is, truly, savage!
Our good friend (and notorious Argo bandit), Andrew had run “the Night Wolf,” a brand new trail race put on by, or for, the wyco wolf pack. The weather here has been very wet. The trails, according to Andrew, were extremely difficult. There is hardly any swag for this one. I’m not so upset about missing it.
Hearing about these races was bittersweet. I’m sorry to miss out on any race. I’m very happy friends of mine were able to participate. I have to remember: I can’t do everything!
One great feature of the Spencer C Duncan 5k is the “boulevard of heroes.” Volunteers hold up portraits of service members killed in action along the entire course. I think this is a really cool memorial and a very neat feature. It makes Sydney emotional.
The last portrait on the course, about a tenth of a mile before the finish, is Spencer Duncan, the race namesake. I told Sydney, “When we get to that picture we’re going to pull the trigger!” She was sooo tired! She was worn out after a tough Friday workout. She had been pushing it the entire race, but she dug in and really RAN that last bit of the race! Sydney won her age group!
1st in her group!
The race is great, but the party at the start/finish is really where it’s at. There’s a Chinook helicopter to tour, a lot of vendors with swag, and my favorite feature this year, Stroud’s cinnamon rolls! I had 3!
There was a d.j. playing hits from the 70’s and 80’s. We were getting down!
Spencer C Duncan make it count 5k was a wonderful experience! I’m glad we got up early and ran it!
What a race! I had signed up as pacer for the 2:10 group. Not awfully fast, but not terribly slow. The pace sticks had the pace time, not the finish time. I suppose that’s helpful for runners that want to keep a steady pace. I am the WORST at keeping a steady pace!
10:00 per mile 😄
I started out “just right” but that hardly lasted. Some people will push their pace, trying to bank time for walk breaks at aid stations. I just sort of ran and tried to stay in range. It didn’t seem like anyone was relying on me to be totally accurate.
10:00 per mile
The race had an option to start thirty minutes early, which is nice! Early start is good for people that may not be very fast and are afraid of missing a cut-off or people that are sensitive to the weather and are afraid of heat injury, which is a real threat. A (probably) unexpected effect was I got to see friends a little more often than the usual once, maybe twice during an out and back. If I had been just running instead of pacing, I for sure would have started early.
There were so many friends running and volunteering! Sydney was pacing the 2:30 group, and Josh was pacing the 2:15 group. We were all off by some minutes. Cody had started early. After he finished, he stood at the last turn with a horn cheering in the runners!
There were only a couple of runners collapsing at the finish area. It was so hot and humid! After a while in the shade, everyone recovered.
The rock island trail course is rail to trail, crushed gravel, mostly shaded, out and back. Just a mile at the beginning / end is out in the sun. That little stretch sure did seem longer at the end of the race! There’s a cool bridge over the trail where the course photographer set up. The pictures are great!
Already sweaty
The volunteers at the aid stations were top notch! The runners were asked before the event to use the provided cups and not fill personal bottles or anything, but there was plenty of water to accommodate everybody. I got ice at one of the aid stations. There was no fireball this time. It’s a good thing, I’m not sure I could have finished!
Phil let me stick my head in his truck to get a little a.c. but I had to get away real quick, or I would have climbed right in there and dq’d less than a mile from the end!
Overall, I felt it was a difficult race done well. I don’t have any criticism for the race directors or kc running company. I haven’t heard anything negative from anybody else, either. Just that it was hot. And humid. We can’t control the weather, yet.
I know I’m missing a few posts. I had a few races. I had some personal and “professional” life things I should have been sharing. I’ll tell you: I was sweating THIS race! You see, I’m pretty spoiled. I’ve hardly had to earn anything in my life. Hard work? Struggle? That’s for suckas.
Well, you just can’t charm a country road. The sun doesn’t care how nice or funny you are. Someone posted a meme: The hill doesn’t care about your feelings!
Lol
We start out in a beautiful lakeside park shelter. It’s a race, so of course we have to be there at 5 a.m. to check in. This race is unique in the fact that it’s 99.69% crew/self supported. There are some ice and water refill stops, but mainly, it’s you, the road, and your crew. So the organizers demand your crew carry 30 lbs of ice, 12 gallons of water. I don’t know the international conversion of that. It’s a lot of ice and water.
They had a “runner’s church” set up, and one of the race officials held a little service. I’m not a person of faith, but I REALLY dogged my training for this one. If I ever needed god on my side, it was now! Haha!
The first part of the race goes through Cheney state park for a couple of miles. It’s a beautiful run around a lake at dawn. Then I hook up with the world’s greatest crew and head out onto the roads of King’s county. The long, long roads.
The plan (lol) was to meet the crew every 4 miles. That was the advice Sydney (HBIC) was given by some veterans of this race. That is a great plan, and I still believe the better distance. We had to change it to 3 miles. My water bottles just couldn’t quite get me to 4. During the hotter parts of the day, they barely got me to 3! (I kept making the crew check for leaks. There are no leaks.)
Things go really well for about 25 miles. I’m keeping a steady pace. Fuelling really well. Everybody is having fun! The only guy on the crew, Jeff, “Heffay,” had to leave. Real work is the worst! He was a champion and tremendous help!
There was one little incident. I kept passing other runners’ crew vehicles and wondering, where’s the WGC? After what must have been (felt like) 15 miles (like, not even a mile), I start to panic. I text Syd asking where they are. She says they’re right there. I don’t see them! If I had been swimming, this moment would be where I drowned. When, like an angel from heaven, our girl Kirby roared up in her charger! Vroom!
She handed me cold water and drove alongside, blasting classic rock and encouragement through her window. I saw the crew ahead, so I tossed her my vest and shirt and told her to go ahead. I picked it up and chugged into them, shirtless, at a sub 8:00 pace!
Then there it was. Just that road. For miles and miles. And miles. And miles. I wrote it that way on purpose. And miles. The description said 32 miles. My garmin said 33 miles. Still going. One road. Straight ahead. For miles. And miles. I asked, “When we get to turn?” This course was supposed to be rectangular. Our girl Erin “p-quad (p4)” let me in on the detail of “it’s at the t intersection. When the road ends, don’t keep going. That’s not the road.” Sage advice, indeed. Erin was hilarious! She was scheduled to pace with me but showed up early to help the crew. She brought a megaphone, some wisdom, some experience (she’s familiar with the area in general, and this race in particular) and just a badass attitude that fits the WGC perfectly.
I stopped using electrolytes after my upset stomach at Prairie Spirit. I was fueling with just water and salt tabs and gel and chews… and fruit snacks and granola bars…and sandwiches and chips and melon. I was starting to get a little concerned because I had not peed yet. I had a pickle and cut the salt tabs for a stop, and that got the flow going.
Food was starting to sound gross. My appetite was gone. That happens, I just need to force food down, but nothing substantial was working. I think it was mainly because of mild dehydration, but I’m no doctor. I just know that when I would eat a corner sandwich, I would gag. We got a bit down when they threw out the bread. And some beef jerky Kirby picked up at the gas station was alright 👍, but granola bars, gels, and chews weren’t happening. This would continue for a while.
I finally got to the turn! It felt amazing! The crew was playing our theme: “I’m sexy and I know it,” and I couldn’t help but dance!
Also, there was another runner that finally caught up with and passed me at that point. Grr! J/k, it’s not that kind of race for me. I’m just trying to 1. Finish 2. Survive.
One thing we were all looking forward to was “the oasis,” a love’s truck stop around mile 45. I was really looking for it, because I’ve had to poo since mile 35!
I don’t like to bring these types of things up, but if you’re out there for 24+ hours, cramming garbage in your face and churning your guts, things will happen. Things that will not be ignored. If you’re lucky, you can handle this business in a little, stinky, hot plastic box. If you’re really lucky, a park shelter with a tiny window. If you’re REALLY, REALLY lucky, an air-conditioned semi-private room with hand washing facilities. But, usually, it’s just…the ground. Sorry. Running is gross. Also, I was unlucky twice on this run, but never in my shorts! (Not to brag.)
After Love’s, it was on to the church! The church was where the 50 milers (53 milers) ended their race, and the hundred milers can start using pacers. There’s a 16-hour cutoff to get to the church, but I was way ahead of pace all day. The church was very cool! It’s a tiny little speck of a town, and all the crews were there, along with some spectators and a dog!
Gay Ann was my first pacer, after crewing all day. After arriving in town late the night before. She’s amazing! And an infuriatingly fast walker! She inspired me to jog some mainly by eliminating the difference between walking and jogging. It was awesome! She kept me moving until David took over around midnight?
Just gotta get this rock outta my shoe
David “Bootsy” had signed up as soon as he could to pace me through the very tough overnight hours. I was very excited to run with him. I’m very impressed with David! He ran a full marathon distance at argo. He’s a triathlete and a power lifter. He’s an engineering student and professional. And a great pacer. We walked for quite a bit of the night. The temperature barely dropped, the humidity went up. It was country dark out there. David never complained, and never called me out when I whined and whinged. We managed some shorter intervals sometimes, but mainly, it was: leave the crew, wait for Rex to pee, hike a mile, look for the crew.
In the meantime, the World’s Greatest Crew was lighting up the night! We had Jamie, Sherri, Gay Ann, and, of course, Sydney, all working to make sure all I had to do was move forward through the night. They fought off exhaustion, bugs, and other crews threats on our mascot to keep David and I upright, fuelled, hydrated, and moving. We could spot them from what seemed like forever away, with the lights and the jumping around. It was beautiful!
I was zombie walking. David asked about hallucinations (I think) and I could describe it really well. Because it was happening at that moment. I had to sit. I was a fall risk. Sweet Sydney let me sit in the vehicle with the air on. I managed a three minute cat nap before anxiety got me moving again. I kind of ruined her seat with sweat, but she told me it was endearing. She takes such great care of me! And everyone else! She really is the H.B.I.C. and the brain and heart of this outfit.
About this time, we’re starting to leapfrog other groups. One guy seemed like he was fueling his entire run with beer! Normally, I’m all for that, but I didn’t think my stomach could take it. I did get some calories in the form of a hammer brand recovery drink. That drink, plus the sunrise, really turned me back on!
Bootsy had to get home in time for church, so after driving 2 hours and running all night, he left to drive another couple of hours. Stud!
Gay Ann took over pacing again, and we really capitalized on the morning momentum. She still hiked very, very fast, but now she stopped to take more pictures and I was feeling a bit better.
Erin “P4” came back and took over pacing duties right around the 85th mile (? Mileage gets sketchy around here. My garmin died in the overnight hours. It’s a fine watch, I’m just not fast enough, I guess.)
Erin is an experienced pacer, regularly pacing a half marathon in Wichita. And she’s local. She knows the area really well. And she’s a hasher, so she’s used to seeing grown-ups act like fussy little babies.
I was over this race! I’ve had it with the road, the hills, the corn…I was done.with.it! But Erin pointed at a field and said, “Check out my llama, I left it here while we do this,” and totally changed the mood.
There was, in fact, a Llama. There was so much animal life on this route! Horses (we say a baby horse!) Cows, armadillo, raccoon, skunk, so many snakes! The crew found a baby frog! A lot of the animals were roadkill, sure, but I’m counting them.
After the third meet-up with the crew telling me we’re in the home stretch they decide to give some real numbers: we’re 2 and a half miles from the finish. It’s right there! I asked what time it was and it was a bit after 10 a.m.
In my mind, I was like, “Awesome! We can beat the noon cut off!” The World’s Greatest Crew didn’t remind me the actual cut off time was 6 p.m., because they’re the “world’s greatest” crew, not the “tell you the truth no matter what” crew, and I love them for it! We churn down this road, over this highway, up this road, me complaining the whole time: “oh, gee. Another hill? Let me guess, up? Whaa whaa whaa” all the way to the park. Inside the park, the little jaunt out turned into the world’s longest park road. But it was downhill the entire way, so we kept jogging it. We got to the end and there was everyone cheering and clanging cowbell! I ran down and bopped the finish cone, gave our mascot a big kiss, and went over to get the prettiest buckle/medal I’ve ever gotten. Of course I fell apart. I get very emotional. Sydney was right there for me. She put me in a chair to get myself together.
As I sat there, reflecting on my adventure. The struggles, the challenges, the whole endeavor seeming huge, I got to watch as a stroke survivor that fueled his race with beer finished just some minutes behind me. So perspective is a thing. Lol!
In the end, this was a great race and an awesome time. I couldn’t have done it without the crew and the pacers.
I’m leaving a LOT out of this recap. Some things are just for me. I hope everyone enjoys reading these because I’m really enjoying writing them!
W.W.R.H.D. 