« Pre-Race Events | Main | Getting Settled into a Routine »
September 15, 2004
100k World Championships - September 11th!
Race Day
The morning of the race I was up at 8 a.m. but again decided to rest in bed until 9 a.m. I could hear my team mates downstairs getting things ready and talking about race details. I wanted to try to relax as long as possible. At 9 a.m. I had breakfast, I decided to eat a peanut butter and jelly sandwich on a roll and drank about a liter of water over the course of two hours. I spent most of the morning resting of the couch, gently stretching, and drinking water. Around 11:30 a.m. I had about 6 saltines to put a little bit of salt into my system. At 11:45 a.m. the team left for the race.
When we arrive to Der Klinker, where the race would start and end, there was a lot of activity happening. A children's race was taking place and the young athletes were finishing and celebrating their race. Teams were jogging around and stretching. Managers were setting up their crew tables to have the supplies ready for the runners on each lap.
At Der Klinker I met the second American Team. The second American Team consisted of three of the best ultra runners in the United States. It consisted of Anne Rhiddle, Niki Kimball, and Ann Heaslett. They were running for the American Ultrarunning Association Team. This was a confusing situation because this team would not be able to score in the team competition. All of these women were invited to be on the team that I was running with, the official USATF American team. However, due to a misunderstanding of some nature with regards to what the official team was they ran on the AUA team. The team members on this team were frustrated with the situation but determined to run well despite the situation. I was really excited to get to talk to Anne, Niki, and Ann because I have read so much about them and they have accomplished so much in the sport. I spoke to Niki until the race started and learned that our goals for the first half of the race were very similiar. I decided I would try to stay with her if I felt comfortable and listen to my body the second half of the race.
At 12:45 p.m. we were called to the starting line. We started inside Der Klinker. The starting line would be the 10k point of each lap. A red mat was there which would record our laps each time around with the timing chip we were wearing. I started with half of my team mates and the AUA team. The starting line was very conjested as we were starting with over 300 individuals. There would be 300 inviduals competing for teams and about 200 individuals competing unattached. I was really nervous that I would fall when the gun sounded because of the proximity of all of the runners to one another.
To my surprise when the gun went off, no one that I am aware of tripped and the pace where I was located was controlled and not blazingly fast. Every kilometer of the race was marked which was great because it would allow me to keep track of my effort. I knew that 5 minutes per kilometer would be an 8 minute pace so I dediced to aim for that pace. The first kilometer I was running with Ann, Niki, and Siri. Our time at the 1k was 4.42. It was too fast but to be honest it felt extremely slow. We all decided to try to slow down. We chatted and tried to relax into an easy pace. Along the side of the course fans were lined up with flags and tents and signs. The atmosphere was very festive. The first 2k were cobblestone. The remainder of the course was pavement on roads with a 1k section on a sidewalk that meandered through a park. During this first loop we had several supporters on the side of the road telling us (the American women) to stop talking and start racing. We were not talking non-stop but every now and then a conversation would come up and we'd talk for about five minutes. We took turns leading the pace and went through the first 10k in 47.14. This was faster than my planned 50 minute 10k goal but I felt really good and relaxed and it did not feel like too much strain on my body.
I realized in the first lap that as long as there were people on the course it would be very hard to get bored on this course. The first 5k of the course went through a downtown area of Winschoten that was decorated with flags from all the countries running and signs that wished people good luck. There were people sitting outside of cafes and restaurants cheering. The second 5k was more residental and to my surprise equally fitted with supporters who had huge tents set up outside their homes, water tables set up to hand to the runners, and signs and lights to cheer the runners on. The atmosphere was very festive. There were people playing music with instruments in some sections, there was music from radios in other sections, there were people with noise makers in other areas, and there were a lot of people who had race brochures who would look up our race numbers and cheer for us by name when we ran by. Being cheered by your first name was extremely motivating and really forced me to dig deep at certain times during the race.
The second, third, and fourth 10k loop all were pretty smooth. I did stop on each of these loops to go to the bathroom in a small stretch of woods along one of the roads. I was a little worried that I might be sick because of the number of times I went but frankly I think it was the sauce from the night before. I decided not to worry about it and just use the time I stopped as a quick break, stretch, and gradually get back to pace. I did not want to stress about catching up to my pack of American runners once I started running again so I did my best to relax. After about 10 minutes I'd usually catch up to them, I am sure it was competitive instinct. These laps were 47.55 for the second lap, 48.30 for the third lap, and 51.45 for the fifth lap.
At 50 kilometers I was halfway done. My time was 4.03.57. I was really happy with this time and hoping I could run at least a 4.15 in the second half so that I could finish under 8.20. At this point in the race I felt very good. The time for the 50k was pretty fast but I figured my all time best 50k time of 3.58 was on a trail which was no where near as flat as this course. In terms of my energy level I felt great. I was drinking lots of water and started taking gus every half hour after 10 miles. At one point on the second lap, I was given one of my team members aid station supplies. I was handed her water bottle and her gu. I was really nervous about having her things because I did not want to throw her off. I decided not to use them and gave the supplies to the AUA team manager and asked that they run it down to the American Aid station table. Thankfully they were able to do this and for the next 5k I used no water which I don't think really killed me.
On the 5th lap the group of women I was running with started to break apart. Niki pulled ahead, Siri and Ann dropped behind, and I tried to concentrate on running evenly in between each kilometer. About half way through this lap I started to feel my quadriceps getting very tight. My right quad was getting very sore. I decided to focus on running as evenly as I could through each stride so that I would be using each leg evenly. I finished the 5th lap in 51.45 and started to think about what additional supplies I could use at the aid station to help my quads feel better.
By the time I got to my first aid station in the 6th lap my quads felt trashed. With each step that I took they killed. I told my team manager that they were killing me and I was very frustrated. She gave me some advil, a salt tablet, and some coke, along with my gu and water and told me that one of the members on the men's team had the same problem and after one lap he felt better. This was encouraging but the thought of running 4 more laps with each step hurting was very daunting. A half mile after the aid station, I started to walk. I was very frustrated and did not know how I could run a descent pace with the constant reminder of tired legs that killed with each step that I took. I was walking for about 100 meters when a member of the Argentina team who was lapping me, stopped for a minute, and encouraged me to keep running. He told me the slower you run the harder the race is going to be for you. He was absolutely right. Part of the reason my legs were getting so stiff, apart from the terribly flat roads, was the shortened stride I was using to run slower. I decided to put my best effort in and try to take it lap by lap. His words encouraged me to start running again. At the 7k mark, after only 2k of running, I began to feel really nauseus. This really upset me. I had no idea how I'd run on fatigued legs and with a sick stomach. I stopped to go to the bathroom again and when I finished I definitely felt better. I decided to run from aid station to aid station and look forward to the coke at each station. I finished this lap in 58.15 and even though I was disappointed that it was so slow was really proud of myself for sticking with it. This was the only lap that I seriously considered dropping out. I don't think I ever really could have dropped out because my team manager was amazing and extremely encouraging. I also knew that my friends and family in the U.S. were keeping track of my splits. They would expect me to be seriously injured had I dropped out.
From this point on in the race I had a coke at each aid station, well a small cup of coke, and continued to take the gu and water. I did walk quickly through each aid station from this point on. For the first five laps I ran through and just exchanged bottled. I decided however, that I needed a quick walking break, to give my legs a break and mentally refocus. On the 6th lap I was passed by my team mate Rena, she looked great. I decided on my 7th lap I would try to regroup and catch up to her again to give me some additional focus. I did not see her on my 7th lap but was able to run the individuals who were running in the 10 x 10k relay to help me keep my pace even. Anyone in the race with a bib number over 1000 was in the relay. A lot of these runners were in the 8 minute pace range. On the 7th lap using these runners helped me and got my lap pace back to 52.30. I was really encouraged and very happy knowing that I had only three laps to go. I was really anxious, though, to have only one lap to go.
By the 8th lap the temperature was getting cooler because by now it was almost 7 p.m. It was not at all chilly but compared to the 75 degree weather we had in the first four laps it felt nice and cool. I wanted to run this 8th lap in the same time as my 7th lap and decided not to get distracted in this lap. My main distraction usually was thinking about how heavy my quads felt or worrying about how many more laps I had or worrying about how I would run 12 miles farther than I had ever run in my life. I accomplished my goal on this lap and ran it one second faster, running 52.29. I saw my team-mate Rena towards the end of this lap and ran with her for about 1 kilometer before moving ahead of her.
The 9th lap began to get difficult again. I started to have spasms in my calves. Up until this point the only pain I experienced was in my quads but now my left quad was beginning to spasm. I knew I needed some salt and was really annoyed that I had not brought any gatoraid to drink during the run. I should have alternated between water and some type of electrolyte drink between each aid station in each lap. When I arrived at the aid station I told them my calves were cramping and asked if they had pretzels. They had no pretzels but they gave me some pringles. The pringles tasted great, very salty. I ate about four of them with my coke while I was walking quickly through the aid station. The last 5k of this lap I experienced my cramping in my other calf. It became very difficult to focus on running while my calves were knotting up on me. This 9th lap was 55.12. I stopped around the 7k mark to stretch but realized that stopping was only making it worse.
I was disappointed that my time had slowed down but very motivated to have only one lap to go. I decided that no matter what I would move constantly on this last lap. The charlie horses in my calves seemed to be getting worse or it could have been that my tolerance was weakening. My energy level was good. I did not feel very hungry and my arms felt fine and my breathing was fine. I did however, feel that I was limping around this last lap because of my cramping calves. At this point my quads were still very achy but the pain in my calves overpassed the pain of my quads forcing me to forget about it. With 5k to go I was really excited. I decided to take in the scenary and focus on the crowds and the experience. The same supporters were still on the sides of the road who were there at 1 in the afternoon. They had built bon fires now and were singing and cheering for us while sitting next to their bon fires. There were small ornamental lights lined up along the streets and loud cheers from spectators knowing it was the last lap for me of the race. I was getting really excited and really looking forward to sitting down once I crossed the finish line.
At the last aid station, with 1 kilometer to go, I threw my water bottle to them and jogged into the finish. My team mate Laura who I had not seen the entire race put on an amazing kick with 800 meters to go. She passed me and it looked like she was running a 6 minute pace. She finished first for our team and finished one minute ahead of me. I was disappointed that I could not stay with her but there is no way my legs would have let me run that pace at that point in the race. Laura was sprinting to try to get her pr. Her previous best was 8.43 so she did beat that by running an 8.38. I was really happy for her. I finished in 8.39 which was an 8.22 pace per mile and my team mate Siri finished one minute behind me with an 8.40.
When I finished my calves really gave out on me and some of the race officials had to help me over to a wheel chair. They put a blanket around me and asked me if I was ok. I told them I was fine. One of the members of the men's team, Scott Creol, came over to congratulate me. I asked him how his team had done. Unfortunately, only 3 out of the 6 members of their team finished. 3 individuals dropped out because of bad leg cramps. When I heard this I was really glad that I finished and really proud of my team who had all of its members finish. I sat in the chair for about 10 minutes and then decided I needed to put some warm cloths on.
I got my back pack and congratulated all of my team mates. I was really happy and talking a mile a minute. I don't think I was really sure in those last 40kilometers if I could actually finish the race. I went to find the showers and went to the bathroom. When I went to the bathroom I realized I was extremely dehydrated as I had a small amount of blood in my urine. I asked Carolyn, the doctor, about it and she told me to drink lots of water. Over the next two hours I drank about 2 liters of water and my urine returned to a clear color. After my shower I was given a snickers bar by a runner from the Italian team. I gladly took it and at half of it. As soon as I ate it I realized I was starving.
When the team was united we all went out for Chinese food. By the time we got back to our bungalo it was almost 2 in the morning. Everyone was pretty tired so we all went to bed. I have a really hard time sleeping after any ultra races that I run. My legs usually shake all night long. I tried my best to sleep but I was laying there awake all night. My legs were aching and I just wanted to forget about it and go to sleep. I decided to try to meditate but that did not work. At 7 a.m. I got up and went for a walk. I could barely walk down the stairs and my walk was pathetic because I was moving so slowly. I did feel better when I got back and decided to have some breakfast and take a shower.
The team went to the awards ceremony at 10 a.m. We found out that our team took fifth place overall. I was really happy about that. The top American women from the AUA team took 6th overall and was 3rd in her age group. She got a special award for that. Anne ran a terrific race, running a pr of almost 20 minutes. Her previous best was 8.10 and on the race course in Holland she ran 7.50. I was so impressed.
I spent the rest of the day after the awards resting, watching a movie, taking a few short walks, and drinking lots of water. I went to bed very early and fortunately was able to sleep.
I spent the entire day on Monday traveling and by the time I got back to CT realized I had been up for 24 hours. I was exhausted.
On Tuesday I had to return to school for classes and coaching. By this time I could walk and was feeling better but still very sleep deprived.
Today, I feel better, having had a good nights sleep. My right quad is still pretty sore especially going up stairs. I am definitely going to take a few more days off from running. I would like to run on Saturday with the team so until then I will be in the pool and maybe start my lifting routine today or tomorrow. I am still thinking about my next training plan and will probably post that within the next day or two. I want to run the US National 50k Championships in December but for now I want to recover and wait until November to make the decision to run.
I am really thankful to everyone who was so supportive of me running in the 100k race. It was awesome to have so many people thinking of me. During the race I never wanted to run the distance again but now, just a few days after the race, I am tempted to try it again. However, in the future I will want more than 3 weeks notice to run the race so I can feel like I have trained for the event. Ok, now I am going to grab some lunch and maybe try to do some light lifting before the team meets for practice.
Posted by mary at September 15, 2004 8:25 AM
Comments
Mary---GREAT Update!!! I have been so eager to hear all about the details of your trip.... Thanks so much for including so much here! tons more soon. & Great great job...are you catching up on your sleep yet...!!! Liz
Posted by: Liz at September 15, 2004 10:39 AM
Before I run my next marathon, I'm going to reread this, just so I won't feel sorry for myself when I hit the wall with 3-6 miles to go. It's amazing how well you were able to push yourself on dead legs, and that you were able to stay so positive with so many miles to go! Congratulations on such a great race!
Let me know if you want to pool run...
Posted by: Alison at September 15, 2004 11:23 AM
Mary,
Congratulations! 100K on pavement, cobblestones, or anything other than nice forgiving trail can be brutal. You did it anyway and finished. YOU GO GIRL! (Strange, her story reminds me of a time I did a 100 miler.. it was hot, I was down 10 lbs and had 55 miles to go... Damn, a year's worth of memory repression therapy wasted. Now how am I going to find the courage do another.)
Anyway, my hat's off to you Mary. You make us proud. >> fellow Tamalpan, PHIL
Posted by: Phil (fellow at September 15, 2004 12:50 PM
This is quite an impressive entry of an absolutely amazing feat. Not only do you have a solid body to accomplish this, but you must also have such a strong mind. Well, I can say you've provided plenty of inspiration for me as well as anyone who reads this, I'm sure. As Alison said, I think I will return to re-read this when I need a mental boost. Take care of your body and enjoy the race afterglow. Congratulations! Meghan
Posted by: Meghan at September 15, 2004 2:03 PM
Congrats Mary, and thanks for the great race report! I was really looking forward to hearing all about it. As someone who has never seen or really even heard or read much about an ultra race I was totally impressed and definitely in awe! Hope the recovery goes well!
Posted by: Beth at September 15, 2004 3:22 PM
Go Mary! You forgot you were hungry at the end of the race?!? Gee, that's the whole *reason* some people I know race --so they can eat all they want at the end! ;) Keep in touch with us Tamalpans!
--indi
Posted by: indi at September 15, 2004 6:50 PM
Very cool! I'd been checking your blog several times a day to get your report. I feel like such a weenie now for complaining about getting leg cramps in my marathons!
Posted by: jenandmats at September 15, 2004 7:41 PM
Hi Mary!!
Congratulations! Great write-up. I'll put a link to it from the SHC site. You are amazing!!
-Andy
Posted by: Andy at September 15, 2004 11:30 PM
Your story vaguely reminds me of Phil's "No, Not That Water Bottle!" story, that I see he alludes to here. He can tell you when you come and visit. Wonderful report, fantastic job. Good for you for sticking it out. We all miss you!
-Katie
Posted by: Katie Kelly at September 16, 2004 1:46 PM
Wow. I can not possibly imagine running 40K with sore, cramping legs. I will think of you everytime I think I am suffering on a long run. Congratulations, you are one tough chick.
Blondie
Posted by: Blondie at September 16, 2004 5:52 PM
that's awesome!!! reading this psychs me up so much!! you totally kicked it's butt. congratulations!!!
Posted by: Audrey at September 18, 2004 2:55 PM