2025 Midnight Dreary 12-Hour
Low Expectations

Training this year seems to be deteriorating rather than building. Between issues with my pacemaker that were keeping my heart rate too low, to a strong adverse reaction from my annual flu and Covid vaccinations, I've missed many days of training or curtailed them to only a few miles. I had hoped by this time I would be able to run 40 miles, but at my current fitness anything over 50K will be acceptable.

I've been stalking the weather beginning 10 days out and watched as the forecast changed from 79F and sunny to 77F and showers. At least I don't see any incipient tropical storms or hurricanes in the forecast. Of more concern since the race isn't going to be what I'd hoped for, is a possible government shutdown that would affect my vacation plans to tour Fort Sumter and Congaree National Park.

I've pushed training longer than normal, though I'm not sure what good that will do besides making me feel better, so I have a very short taper. The weather may affect not only my race, but the entire trip as the forecast has extended the rain to the entire week. I'll need all my rain gear. I finally checked travel times for when I'll actually be driving. With stops for lunch, it will be at least 11 hours. Hopefully I can get 7-8 hours the first day, so I'll have time for some sightseeing and a shakeout run before picking up my bib and going to the pre-race dinner.

Since this trip is doubling as a race and vacation, I toured Boone Hall Plantation before getting thoroughly lost trying to find my hotel in Mount Pleasant. I had almost as much trouble finding packet pickup, but at least the pre-race dinner was next door, then returning to my hotel wasn't much of a problem. I had checked out the turn off Route 17 during my shakeout run, so I had some landmarks to look for. Continuing with driving challenges, it was actually easy finding the track Saturday morning, and only a few minutes from the hotel.

I arrived in ample time to find my canopy, table, and chair. I was last in the row and nearest to the aid station. Part of the pre-race instructions included a review of USATF rules as the race is sanctioned and record eligible. I think there were a couple runners hoping for age group records.

As usual no one seemed to want to start right at the timing mat. Knowing I would, and should, be at or near the back with my slow start, that's where I positioned myself. My plan was to maintain a run 1:00, walk 2:00 routine for as long as I could. I expected that to be about a 15:30 pace based on some paced training runs. I was much slower, closer to 16:30, then with breaks included it was a 17:00 pace for the first four plus hours. After that my legs weren't up to continuing to run. Initially may pace slowed to about 19:00 but the early effort along with lack of fitness, I soon found myself struggling to maintain even a 20:00-21:00 pace. I also need more rest breaks or it would be 23:00 pace. From 30K on I was in a constant mental battle with myself to keep moving. Maybe finally seeing my 50K goal approach, I felt better over the last few laps, enough that I walked a bonus lap to finish with 50.4K/31.317 miles. When I saw the final results I was shocked to see that the men's winner ran less than 2 miles more than me. Had I known that, I might have been tempted to continue since I had almost an hour and fifteen minutes remaining of the twelve hours. In retrospect I don't have any regrets. With a couple days of walking tours in Charleston ahead, I didn't want to exhaust myself so much that I wouldn't be able to enjoy that.

At this point I have nothing planned for the rest of the year, and nothing really appealing except perhaps Across The Year in Phoenix at the end of December.