Sometimes the car makes the quietest office. No dogs, no horses, no cell phone signal, no interruptions, just work getting done.
I decided to leave early for the Full Moon 50K in order to take advantage of a good parking spot and a quiet "office".
By the time I was in Cabot, outward bound, I remembered the forgotten head lamp, ugh! We needed to replace one so no big deal. Picking one up on the way is okay, I have plenty of time.
After sitting in the car for an hour getting some office work done, I remembered what other important item that was forgotten, my trail shoes! This is a big OH NO!
I had on my feet 4 year old Altra Intuition road shoes. There isn't much sole between the foot and the road on that pair of shoes. No reason to panic. A girl with a pocket knife can do almost anything right?!
With materials gathered round, construction of insoles was underway. A gallon plastic water bottle would be cut to make rock plates, some cardboard for more padding on the insole. Chrissy Ferguson saw me messing with my feet and offered me a pair of her extra commercially manufactured insoles, what a lifesaver that turned out to be! That is what trail runners do, save each other from their stupid!
Karen Hays suggested, and then shared some lamb's wool to put between my toes to help prevent blisters.
This is a 50K with no drop bags, etc. I tend to get worried, anxious and over-pack. This trip was no different. Worried, anxious and over-packed was how I started this race. Attached to my Ultimate Direction hydration pack was an extra little carry case for a blister kit, extra fuel, extra socks, etc.
This added weight turned out to be a problem later on.
Eddy Light, my training partner, and I decided to just see how it would play out. We figured a pace of 17:25 was needed to finish in 9 hours. Eddy had been training like a beast and I have been eating clean so we really didn't know what to expect.
We made a dumb ass mistake, we went out too fast. We talked about it as we were laying down 15 minute miles knowing we should slow down. Eddy had tapered and I had been eating clean, as mentioned, maybe we could do this at this pace. Not!
By the time we reached the 15K turn around Eddy had enough fun for his money, He told me he was turning around to do the 25K. Oh I wanted to join him so bad! It didn't take long before I really wished to have turned back. The chatter in my head was that I could turn around now and still get a finish for the 25K. I said that to myself at miles 10, 11, 12....
It took some mighty doing to keep going. Upon reaching the turn around I had decided to be done. I walked into that aid station crying, sweating and just hating life. Rich Brown talked me off the ledge getting my head and heart in a better place. He relieved me of the extra pack full of the extra weight I didn't need to be carrying as well.
Tums, ginger ale, Mt Dew and orange wedges became the fuel for body and soul. I couldn't wait to get to the next aid station so I could get Tums, ginger ale, Mt Dew and orange wedges, in that order.
I made it to the 25K turn around, inbound, in time, no cut-off this year. You can read what happened last year here.
Before reaching the last aid station I saw light heading my direction. It had to be Jeff Beason, an aid station volunteer and fellow Team RWB member, heading this way to find the stragglers, me. It is so great to know someone is waiting, looking for you, going out to find you. Feeling the love is part of the reason to be out there.
I did not make the 9 hour limit. It took 9 hours 16 minutes to finish that thing. I crossed the finish line crying like a baby. This wasn't harder than the Traveller 2015, but it sure was more emotional. Something like this leaves one full of doubts and fears. I have to constantly remind myself this is July, I'm more fit, stronger, than I was last year at this time.
I have to work harder. I have to cross-train consistently. I can be so much stronger by October 1.
What is needed:
Consistent meditation
Consistent cross-training
More heat training
The training is mine to do. The fellow travelers are there to help me through.
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