2022 Alexander County 6-Hour
Quick Turnaround
It wasn't until I started planning my recovery runs that it hit me how close this was to Pistol 50K. March 19 to April 2 seemed a lot longer than a mere two weeks. I was rethinking running this race for the first week of recovery, but that was going so well that I decided it was worth the time and expense to register and make the trip to North Carolina. I did really want another long run or race before 3 Days at the Fair on May 14th. With trail races no longer under consideration, Spring SOMO Timed Trail Races was not an option.
Despite being an eight hour plus drive, I decided to make it in one day. Since the race was more a supported training run and not a goal race, I wasn't as concerned about being as well rested as possible. With breaks for food and fuel, it took me nine hours. My hotel was a mild disappointment. It was relatively isolated and the only place for a short shakeout run was the parking lot. It also was not serving breakfast in any form, not even coffee and prepackaged pastries. That necessitated a stop at McDonald's on my way to the race Saturday morning. Dressing for the race presented a quandary. With frost warnings overnight, the temperature at start time was only slightly over freezing, but by afternoon could be approaching 60F. Since the cold bothers me more than the heat, I opted for tights and a lightweight long sleeve shirt over a t-shirt and gloves. The gloves came off after a couple miles, but I wore both shirts the entire race. While it did get warm and I did consider shedding the long sleeve shirt, it was also very sunny. It functioned well in lieu of stopping to put on sunscreen.
As usual I started slowly, quickly dropping toward the back of the field, though not last. With three races, 6-hour, 12-hour, and 24-hour, there were 33 runners total. Uncharacteristically I had to stop just a couple laps in to retie a shoe. I can't remember the last time that happened. Then a couple miles in I had a sharp pain on the inside of my left ankle. At that point I wondered if I would have to walk the entire race. Fortunately after sitting and working on ankle rotation for a minute or two to stretch the area, the pain disappeared and I was able to run. I lost a few seconds retying my shoe and maybe a minute working on the ankle, but in the end it wouldn't make any difference. I kept a very steady run one minute, walk one minute for the first 20 miles. A few laps were a little slow when I swung wide to grab something from the aid station positioned on the outside of the track. At that point I was averaging about 13:50 pace. With Garmin error and the track being certified at 400.68 meters, getting a precise split time was not possible. After 20 miles I felt fatigue building quickly in my legs, probably the result of racing so soon after running the Pistol 50K. For a few more miles I tried to maintain my run one minute, walk one minute schedule at a slower pace, but eventually had to extend the walking to a lap or lap and a half. Walking a lap took about 4:10-4:15 which ate into my 4:00 cushion a little each lap. Keeping an eye on the clock to be sure I had a cushion to meet my 100 lap goal, roughly 40K/25 miles, I occasionally ran for a minute each lap to maintain about a 4:00 cushion. That gave me the option to run one more lap for a total of 101. In distance that works out to 25.146 miles or 40.47 kilometers. Overall I finished 5th of 10 runners, 4th male. Interestingly, though it's not the farthest I've run in 6 hours since I have some 6 hour splits in 12-hour races that are longer, it is a personal best in a 6-hour race.
With the late race fatigue, this was probably one of the hardest races I've ever run, rivaling the Bob Potts Trail Marathon back in 2013 when I was training for my first ultra race. That one had me crying by the end. I'm definitely taking some time to recover before resuming training for 3 Days at the Fair 12-Hour in May. I tried a few days with two short workouts for recovery from the Pistol 50K and preparing for this one that seemed to work well. That had me moving more, but not enough to generate more fatigue. I plan for 3 Days at the Fair to be a major goal race, so I'm hoping we have decent weather and not an early heat spell.