2013 North Coast 12-Hour Race

My First Ultra Marathon

My apologies to those who deserve mention, especially my two guardian angels, RedSparkle and theBanshee (RWOL Forum names) While I would still have had a successful race, these two among many, many of the support crew and my fellow runners, made it a spectacular one.

How does one describe an experience like this? It's more than just a race; it's a final exam for graduation, a testimonial, a vacation, a holiday, a celebration all rolled into one. Let me take a deep breath and start with my preparations for the trip.

Last year I brought homemade fudge to the race and was told that was expected again this year. I also innocently mentioned that I might made homemade Chex Mix as well. So here it is Wednesday evening and I'm mixing together ingredients. I only had time to make the Chex Mix, so Thursday morning I'm hovering over the stove with my fudge making sure I don't cook it too long - I make the old-fashioned fudge with Hershey's cocoa. I still have to finish packing then triple check to make sure I don't leave anything behind that I might need. Most likely I am over packing and won't use but a third of what I'm bringing. As long as I have my shoes, anything else I can get in Cleveland if I have to.

I'm hoping to be on the road shortly after noon on Thursday instead of waiting for Friday. I've been fine at my other races after driving 2-3 hours the day before, but this will be an all day trip and I'll be stiff and maybe even a little sluggish the next day. Even if I only get part way there, as long as I can cut Friday's driving to a couple hours, that will improve my chances of a better race. It's an added and unplanned expense, but with everything from the money to the sweat and tears that I've put into this so far, it's worth it to me.

Yes! I'm on the road at 1:30 p.m. I should at least get to Ohio before I stop for the night. As I expected it took me longer than Yahoo! Maps said it would. I was more than ready to pull off the turnpike and find a room for the night. At least I can sleep in Friday morning and take my time driving the remainder of the distance. Then I can relax for the rest of the day. As it happened I arrived in Cleveland hours before I could check into the hotel, so I drove to Edgewater Park where the race was being held and walked the loop several times. That served several purposes. It helped me unwind from the drive, reminded me of the layout and where I could expect wind coming off the lake, and where those little bumps in the course were that I was told would morph into mountains later in the race. Afterwards I grabbed some lunch at a little Mexican restaurant then headed back to the park to relax. I spent a relaxing afternoon watching some locals play lightning chess, just what I needed to get my mind off the race for a while. Now I could finally check into my room and relax until our evening FE (forum encounter) and pre-race pizza party. At least a dozen of us were there I think, some of whom I was meeting in person for the first time and some whom I had met last year. We had a great time sharing stories, pizza, and other goodies before heading back to our various hotels for hopefully a good nights sleep or at least rest.

I barely slept Friday night. It seemed like every time I awoke only a half hour or hour had passed. I finally gave in and got up at 6:00 a.m., dressed for the weather - it was raining of course - and went down to grab some breakfast. It wasn't a great selection but a couple muffins, an orange, and coffee would suffice for now. I knew there would be plenty of food at the race. Several of my friends and a couple other runners I didn't know came in while I was there. I may have been one of the last to actually leave for the race but there was still plenty of time. I had planned to get there about an hour before the start to pick up my packet and meet everyone. That should have been a simple task since this race is so well organized. After filling out a waiver I stood at the registration table waiting for someone to bring me my packet. I was puzzled when one of the volunteers asked if I'd gotten my packet yet. When I replied no, she went to look again for it and it was nowhere to be found. Apparently in a rush another runner had grabbed it and already left the area. Once we figured out who it was they paged him, but to no avail. I waited patiently while the RD and volunteer made sure they had a chip for me, gave me a new number, changed all the information on the other runner, and assured me all would be fine and my laps and results would be recorded properly. Relieved and assured I finally walked down to our canopy and tents to greet everyone. We had the obligatory pre-race photos of the group including one with almost all of us sporting large fuzzy orange mustaches stuck to our upper lips. Unfortunately, or maybe fortunately, I couldn't get one to stick to my existing mustache so you won't have that sight of me. Race time neared so I made a last minute stop at the restroom before lining up near the back of the field. I think we had 152 runners registered for the two races and 117 who were able to make it to the starting line, 17 in the 12-hour race and 115 in the 24-hour race.

This is where it starts to get hard, both the running and the writing. Based on my last long run which was supposed to be a dress rehearsal for the first 20 miles today, I began with alternating 5 minutes running and 3 minutes walking. The first things I noticed was that I was running much faster than I expected and initially this had me worried. I decided I had to go with what felt right, not what my Garmin said, and this felt very easy and comfortable. Then I realized my planned pattern would conflict on some laps with stopping at the aid table. I also wanted to walk the two tiny inclines as much as possible because I'd been forewarned that they could seem like small mountains by the end of the race. This required a second decision on how to fit my run/walk pattern to the course. What seemed to work best was to extend the run by no more than 30 seconds or cut it back by 30-60 seconds so that I could walk through the aid station and hopefully finish that segment at the top of the first little hill. As long as I was running approximately 60% of each lap and walking the other 40%, figured I would be okay. That's the way it stood for the first 40 laps by which time it had finally stopped raining. The wind, however, did not ease and every time we approached the little down hill just before the finish we were smacked in the face with what felt like a gale force wind coming off Lake Erie. Since that coincided with one of my walk breaks most of the time it was less of a factor than it could have been.

Meanwhile I was seeing our runners on the course and our support team every lap. I was trying to take in fluids and calories beginning at the end of lap two. My support team kept urging me to eat and drink more and asking if I needed anything. I tried but when I ate and drank more I started to feel bloated so I cut back again. I think this became a major factor later in the race. Meanwhile when one of the leaders passed me while I was walking he looked back over his shoulder to tell me my arm swing was unbalanced and I should swing my right arm more. That was probably a habit I developed on my solo training runs when I often had to carry a bottle with me. I followed the advice and immediately noticed a difference in the ease of my walking. This was only one example of the help and encouragement I received along the way from friends and strangers, if you can call someone sharing this experience a stranger. Another one of the top runners, one of the woman leaders had an encouraging comment every time she passed me. She was one of the runners I was later able to track down and thank personally for her help.

I started to notice that the fatigue that had been building was finally affecting my pace significantly somewhere around the 40th lap or 36th mile. At this time I was probably about 2 to 3 miles ahead of schedule for a 50 mile total. I suspect that how I was feeling was reflected in my appearance. I dropped to almost even splits between running and walking, then shifted the emphasis to walking more than running. At this point the temptation to quit was very strong. I qualified as an ultra runner. I had not only passed 50K, I was well beyond that. I finally nearing 40 miles. Did it really mean that much to reach 50 miles? It was somewhere around that time that one of my guardian angels rejoined me and continued to walk with me stride for stride, lap after lap. I was discouraged, hurting, but her inspiration and caring concern reminded me that all I needed to do was keep putting one foot in front of the other. Just finish this lap first, then the next lap would take care of itself. She asked what I wanted as we reached the aid station and grabbed it for me so I would lose my momentum.

Somewhere in those laps, I think around lap 42 or 43, one of my support crew squealed to the medical tent staff who sent someone out to politely but firmly suggest I come into the med tent to let them check on me. I turned to my guardian angel and inspiration for her advice, then it sunk in that I wasn't the best judge of my condition and meekly allowed myself to be escorted into the tent. they stretched me, questioned me, Had Dr. Lovy take a good look at me. When they finally let me go after 12-14 minutes, I had strict orders on what to eat and drink, not simply eat and drink more. When I resumed walking - I wasn't about to try running again and risk undoing all the good they had worked on me - my two guardian angels flanked me and made sure I got everything I needed. They continued to pace me through the finals laps and miles checking frequently on me to be sure I was still okay. Each lap I could see that I was loosing ground. Between that and the time spent in the med tent, I saw my hopes of 50 miles gradually fading. It was more important to me to be on my feet and still moving at the end than to pursue the 50 miles and risk a collapse so I moderated my pace to a level that I was reasonably confident I could hold. Amazingly to me, my guardian angels continued to comment on how well I was moving when I felt I was almost at a casual stroll. My final last full lap came at 55 laps and about 11:56:50. I desperately wanted to complete 50 miles so we continued one more unofficial lap. My guardian angel made a point of timing the next .4 miles so I would have at least an unofficial time of 12:01:53 for 50 miles. I finished my unofficial 56th lap at 12:11:04 for 50.5 miles total.

After a trip to the restroom, I thought it best to check back in with the medical staff. They sat me down on one of the tables to check me over. Within minutes I started to feel light-headed and a little dizzy. Then I felt washed out and laid down, followed by shivering. My little visit to check in with them turned into a two hour stay while they ministered to me until they were satisfied that I was okay. I was plied and supplied with Gatorade, bananas, hot vegetable broth, protein in the form of hamburger. I tried a hot dog too but couldn't stomach that. One of my guardian angels had to leave but the other stayed with me the entire time after going out to get me something dry and warm to change into. The medical staff kept chatting with me to keep p my spirits. I think it may also have been a clue to my condition because they seemed less worried when I responded more and also started joking a bit with them. They finally were satisfied that I was okay and let me go.

One of the other 24-hour runners in our group who was going back to her hotel for an extended nap drove me back to mine. I barely remember climbing into bed. The next thing I remember was my phone ringing. When I finally realized what that noise was and answered, it was her reminding me it was time to head back to the race to see the rest of the runners finish. I think I surprised her that I felt well enough to drive, but we did get back to see some amazing final laps. I think she went back for a few more herself. I was still euphoric about mine. I also tried to make it a point that thank everyone I could find who had helped me, runners, support crew, runners' family, volunteers, RD, med people. I especially wanted to let the med people know I was fine. They obviously care about every single runner who came to them.

It's now three days later and I'm still overwhelmed by the event and results. I've spent much of that time on the runner forums catching up with everyone's race reports and comments and the race commentary posted on our FB groups. I've also managed to jog over Monday (yes, I could jog that soon after) to share my results with the cross country team. I promised my coach a full report and emailed my running club coach to let him know the results. One of the best parts was calling my daughter and being able to share all this with her. While I won't see my doctor until my next regular checkup in December, she'll also want to know how it went. Despite not being a runner, she has taken a strong interest in it and supports my running, even crazy events like this. That about wraps it up though I'm sure I've forgotten a lot and my apologies to anyone I've overlooked who contributed to my success.

At this point I'm still basking in the satisfaction on what I accomplished. I have no definite ideas about where I'll go from here or whether I'll ever run another ultra. This one is the most memorable race I've ever run among the 888 that I have in my race log, more so than even my first sub-5:00 mile and first sub-3:00 marathon, which was also my first marathon and at Boston as well. I don't see any rush to decide because my options are wide open from returning to the middle distances to maybe trying a trail 50K or anything in between. It's been a pleasure recording this journey so I can go back and remind my self of what it took and what it meant to me. If those of you who read it have also enjoyed or benefited from it all the better. Thank you.