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!
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.
First-off, let me say, I know I’m behind on my posting. I still have a recap of the Hawk 100 to publish. I apologize. I have started over on that, and it has been almost as tough to recap as it was to run. In the meantime, I would like to change direction and talk about the upcoming races.
Unlike the first races in the super slam of Kansas ultrarunning, with long breaks and plenty of recovery time, the last three races in the slam are rapid fire!
ULTRAPALOOZA: 2 weeks after the Hawk 100 comes Ultrapalooza, a flat and fast rail to trail from the mile 0 trailhead in Osawatame, Kansas. This will be the second year for the showcase race event put on by Midwest Endurance Race Company. Last year Sydney and I ran the 100k and had an awesome time. This year looks to be even better!
Heartland spirit of the prairie 100: 3 weeks after ultrapalooza, we go back to Cassoday, Kansas for Heartland. A surprisingly tough race on rocky gravel roads through the picturesque Flint Hills. “Hills,” it’s right there in the name. Sydney and I ran the 50/50 in the spring, so I have a good idea of what to expect. Hills, rocks, and cows… Also, because of the earlier race, I get a bonus buckle (if I finish 😉).
Heartland
Kansas rail to trail extravaganza 100: 2 weeks after Heartland, the series wraps up where it began way back in March. A 100 mile out and back on the crushed gravel prairie spirit trail. From Ottawa to Iola and back. This race being the final in the slam, and on a familiar trail, close to Halloween time, should be a fun and amazing experience. Sydney and I have big plans and ideas for making it really cool!
Just an idea.
So, three 100-mile races in about 6 weeks, and then it’s all over. Huh. Well, I shouldn’t take it for granted that I will even finish all the races. Anything can happen out there. Severe weather… animal attacks… Food poisoning…Anything, really.
So, the recap of the Hawk will be published soon, hopefully before the other races.
I want this blog to be a record of my attempt at the Super Slam of Kansas ultrarunning. The Heartland 100 is right in the middle of that. When Sydney signed up for the Heartland 50 mile/50k spring race, it was a no-brainer. Of course, I’m going running with my sweety through the beautiful Flint Hills!
Pictures really don’t do it justice. It’s breathtaking.
The Heartland 50 mile/50k is an out and back on the first half of the Heartland 100 course. Rolling hills on gravel country roads, surrounded by grazing cattle and horses. Picturesque views of the prairie nearly the entire way.
Sydney was just getting over an ankle sprain from a couple of weeks before. The plan was for her to start and see how her legs hold up. I was pretty confident she could make it. We were making good time until the first manned aid station, Battle Creek, at about 8 miles. Mile 90 photography got some great pictures of us. Everything was laughs and good times. Then, the hills started.
Syd and I are both Argo road marathoners. We’re not punks when it comes to hills. These hills kicked our asses. By the time we got to the unmanned water stop, Sydney was hurting bad. I asked a 50k runner if they had any advil, and he hooked her up with a pretty good painkiller and some salt tablets.
By the time we got to Lapland, Sydney was making a decision. I used the port-o-john, pet a dog, and while I was getting my bottles refilled, I noticed a bunch of pills sitting on the table. The same pills our new friend gave us. He had just left, and I knew he wasn’t going real fast, so I dropped my vest, grabbed his meds, and took off after him. I saw him walking, so I tried shouting, “Wait!” It came out as a weakly “wheat…”😆 but he eventually stopped so I could give him his stuff. He didn’t even realize!
When I returned, Sydney made the decision to call it right there. Her back was spasming, and she couldn’t go on. It was a tough call, but I feel like the correct call. She wanted me to continue on without her.
How tough is it to run away from a pretty girl, a friendly dog, and bacon?
This is where the race got tough. I had a bit of an idea what the course is like from our friend Clint Bond’s YouTube channel, Clint is a Tall Runner. I didn’t realize the hills… They continue rolling. Up. The pastoral views turn into rocky hillsides. I was alone.
Although just a tiny fraction of the course, in the moment this was a hellscape.
I was kind of booking it. This isn’t a weather blog, and I try to keep the weather out of my recaps, but it’s a character here. The turnaround was nine miles away. The cutoff was about 3 hours. The temperature was in the nineties. I don’t mean “oh, 90. Maybe 92.” I mean all the nineties. The wind was blowing at 30mph with gusts up to 50mph. Probably. I mean, I couldn’t measure it. It was hot and really windy.
I got to the 3rd unmanned water station. My bottles didn’t have a big enough opening for ice. The water was hot from sitting in the sun. There was ice in a cooler and a cooler of Gatorade that was really cold, so I made do. The bottle situation will definitely be corrected before any other race.
Other racers are passing by me going the other way, which I took as a good sign. It meant the turnaround was getting close. I had to stop and shake a rock out of my shoe, which made me angry for 3 reasons. 1) I’m wearing gaiters. I’m not supposed to get rocks in my shoes. 2) There’s a rock in my shoe. It’s very annoying! 3) Occasionally, I’d step “just so,” and the rock would push up on a toenail. As I sat on the ground and pulled my leg up to reach my shoe, I ripped the longest, loudest, fart of my life. Talk about relief! I felt like a new person! The rock is out of my shoe, my stomach isn’t upset, I’m going to beat the cut off. It’s a beautiful day!
When I got to the Teterville aid station, the first thing I saw was a very good puppy. I pet the dog, refilled my bottles, and got out of there. I mean, I only just made it. I had to make up some time. I passed a runner before I got back to the unmanned water stop. There was a volunteer restocking it, so I got some real cold water and a headband full of ice. As I ran on, I saw the runner I passed riding with him. Dang it! Last again! 😆 🤣 😂 I didn’t care. I’m just trying to finish.
I wouldn’t have anything to worry about, though. The conditions were taking a toll on the runners. I passed a guy just sitting in the shade. He said he was fine. If I had full water bottles, I may have just sat there, too. But I didn’t. I passed a couple of people who seemed in good shape but were walking. I passed a guy who could barely stand. I ran for a bit with a runner who had stayed at the same hotel as Sydney and I. He seemed like he was doing okay. He told me he had laid down in a creek to cool off!
We got to Lapland, and I didn’t want to go. I knew how far I had to go. My bottles were letting me down, being too small and not able to carry ice. I didn’t have a hat and felt my face getting really burnt. I was wearing a vest, so I couldn’t really take my shirt off. My feet hurt really bad. Especially my toes, but also my heel. I kept stalling. Eventually, they just threw me out. Good volunteers. Great job! Because once I was going I didn’t stop. I’d jog a bit, do the ultra shuffle (thanks, Leigh!) Anything to move forward, a bit to save a minute here, a few seconds there.
At the next unmanned water station, the ice in the cooler had melted quite a bit. I was able to fill a bottle with ice-cold melted ice! It was a real game changer! Also, a couple of volunteers were driving by to replenish, and I got a top-off from them. The volunteers at this event were great! Just amazing!
Somehow, I made it to Battle Creek Aid. I love Battle Creek! I was a volunteer at this aid station in the fall. The other volunteer then, a trail runner named Scott, was also running it now. It’s a big deal to see a familiar face. I was really afraid of becoming a heat casualty. I sat in the shade and drank water, ginger ale, and Gatorade for a while. Scott offered me a beer, and a beer sounded good, but not a beer 9 miles from the end. A “I did it and it’s all over” beer, that’s the beer that sounds good. That beer sounds awesome!
I dragged myself away. Well, the volunteers made it easy. They started talking about ultras and all the races in the region. Bore me to tears. Yawn!
Up I get and out I go to try and finish. I had been doing dnf math for about 30 miles by now: I need to go this far in this amount of time which is a pace of this many minutes per mile but I’m only going this pace so I can’t possibly make it might as well quit.
The race was getting to me. I knew I was getting close. I got to the last unmanned water stop. The ice was completely melted. The water and the Gatorade were pretty warm. I filled my bottles anyway. I still had 5 miles to go. I pushed on. Shuffle, jog, run, walk. 3 miles to go, I start to see trains. There are tracks I need to cross on the way to the finish! I’m really close!
The Battle Creek volunteers pass me on the way back to the finish. I got my bottles topped off by the u-haul that picked up all the aid stations. I was getting frustrated by not getting to the blacktop yet. I marched on, determined to make it. When I finally got to the pavement, I still had about a mile to go. There was a train rolling on the tracks, so I had a bit. There was some shade to enjoy while I waited, also.
As soon as the train went by, I picked my way over the tracks and started jogging in to the finish. Sydney was there, along with everyone else, cheering for me! I ran it in like a champion!
Overall, I feel like the Heartland 50 mile race was a success. I had some struggles. I learned a lot. I am looking forward to doing the 100-mile race here in the fall.
W.W.R.H.D. 