I am very Tired…not like when I run a 100 mile physically kind of tired but more like being unmotivated to start this new year!
Last year, I remembered it took me until February to get things rolling. To get my act together!
I asked myself, have I considered taking a month or even couple months off from running. Hmm. The answer is never! Never would I do that. But I think I am starting to experience burn-out. 2021 yep big burn-out time in my 2nd half and it might have affected my 2022 first half. Then I pulled myself together. I don’t know when to stop is the thing. The only time I will take a break is when I fall over dead. Anyway…
I tried to sign up for the WTF 50 (which is this coming weekend), but this time I did not get in. People are too fast! I was only a day late after the registration opened. And it all filled. I could write to the RD and beg. But I know they accepted a limited number of people. I think because the parking lot at the trailhead is quite small. Probably around like 25 spots. But we usually jam three times as many cars.
Anyway…maybe next year then. Why WTF is so special to me? I think because it is hard. It is part of the MMT course, but we are doing it in winter. Either crossing very cold water (the whole trail is on a creek — waterfall) or very icy. Yep it is a suicidal kind of run. I tried to get in for the past 3 years. The first year, I ran by myself, when I didn’t get in. I might still do that, but I know I am too lazy.
I did however get into the first MMT group training run. There will be four of these. I hope to get into all of them. Maybe it is a consolation. Last year, I traded the MMT training run for the WTF and then snow canceled on us. A few managed to go out and skated on the mountain trails. Anyway.
I need a long break. A very long one.
In my last post I said I have two reports to do. I don’t think I will ever get to them. So I will try to do it here as briefly as I could.
First one was Naked Nick. I ran it in middle of December. Two weeks after my 100 miler. It was a 50K. I was surprised I could even manage to finish. I started out slow. Very slow. I kept the pace with couple women who I later found out were my friends or a friend with the friend I rode up to PA with. Small world. I am bad with recognizing faces and I only saw the back side of people for most of the race until I started passing the person who then turned to look at me and called out in surprise, Antin! I thought that was funny. It made me feel bad. She came up from DC to run it too. Yes, it was Yana.
I finished it. I liked it because it was a trail run. It was not challenging at all but of course I could try run it faster next year if I wasn’t doing a big race before it. The friend who drove me there asked if I will do it again. It was her favorite. For me, it was just meh, average. Nothing wrong with the race itself. It was just me being too tired. And the race doesn’t seem to be challenging enough. It was a bit far, about three hours drive and in the middle of winter. Usually I don’t re-do a race! Usually I don’t race in the winter. However, there is less and less new races to do in the area, so I might do it again.
My second run (race) was also a 50K, New Year Redeye Run. I love it and want to do this one year after year. It was our local race by the Happy Trail people. We ran it on January first. It was awesome to see my trail friends. All of them. They were instrumental in helping me get my 100 at the Devil Dog. In fact it was on the same course. Not exact route but the park is only so big, you know, so most of it was overlapping the Devil Dog course.
Note, in the previous post, I said I could run this course blindfolded or something similar with my eyes closed because of the Devil Dog! Because I spent 31 hours out there running the same loop over and over and I was sick of it. I was a bit too prideful. And guess what! I got lost twice doing the Redeye! Almost lost not not exactly lost-lost, but luckily each time, the person behind me called out and got me back on course. Well technically we got lost three times! The 50k was to be done in three loops, the first loop I got off trail with everyone because I was following the mass and the lead missed a turn. (Don’t tell anyone, but no one wanted to backtrack to make the correct turn — this should a DNF for us whole lot, however, no one took it seriously). The second time I did not see the ribbon marker, I think the wind took it, or it wasn’t placed at the turn. Note, a lady Ruth, got lost and could get out till the race closed. She probably was one of the medal contenders but became DNF. The third time, I was just being careless. The turn was marked but I was spacing out. Good thing the guy behind called me to make the turn. Anyway, it was a familiar course and I love the devil dog. It brought back so much memories and emotions on that run.
Both races, were cheap and the Redeye was free! Nothing could beat free. I used them as training runs and did not run my heart out as I would if they were real races. As for satisfaction, it was a bit lower, hence, I was dragging my feet to do formal race reports. I hope this is good enough.
Well back on topic. I don’t know if I will post another entry soon. I want some time to rest. Next post maybe next week or the following.
Some other news, and I am excited about this. I booked my air ticket to Texas this morning. They (American) added a new plane, and the price, I think, was reasonable and it was a direct flight, so I pulled off to the side of the road (I was on my way into work at the time) and booked it. I have been kind of anxious because I kind of forgot about this trip. Now I can relax. That race is just a month away! also a 50k. Ya, Cowtown I am coming.
I have two more trips to plan (Toronto and Outer Banks). I was going do them over Christmas, but holidays — and — I was very unmotivated, so haven’t done them yet. Toronto could hold till maybe March. The trip is in May. I searched for tickets already. There are direct flights and prices were reasonable, except I haven’t booked it yet.
Outer Banks though, I need get this S**T done. It is in March and, other people are fast to get their houses because I will be in conflict with a lot of college students and kids on their spring break! OBX is a too popular a destination. I hate myself for dragging my feet. I know, I don’t need a place myself to sleep because I would be running throughout the night, but I still need get a place for my team/crew. Yes, it is a 100 mile race. 32 hours. Planning scares me. I’ve been praying all these years, send me a manager to do all these logistical stuff. Let me just focus on the running part 😉 But all runners deal with this stuff.
My friend David is going to Austin for his marathon…So jealous (Jelly). I already have a race that weekend or I would join him. I have Holiday Lake instead. I need to remember to go to their training run. I forgot the date. I think possibly next or following werkend. Personally I don’t like to go to that part of Virginia because I can’t use the interstate to get there. It takes forever to get there. Possibly was the reason General Lee chose that place to hide, and ultimately surrendered. It is still hard to get there.
And finally, I am about to finish CRAW. Our group is 100 mile away from the finish line. We ran over 30,000 miles combined. I had done 5000 miles. Maybe a few more days, and we will be done. This is the race around the world. I am proud of my team. CRAW had 6 more bonus regions (like another 15000 miles) to explore Africa and Asia. My group won’t be doing the bonus regions, but I hope to join up with another team to continue.
New Year is already here! I am behind on making my resolutions. I am not a big fan of making resolutions because I usually fail after a few days. I also the type of person who needs to have them because I love structure.
I did not start the year with a bang, but I did start it off running. Seriously, I ran a 50K on January 1st. I still need to write a report on that.
In other areas besides running though, I have some “debts” to repay. I felt behind on a bunch of things. There are two race reports to write! I need to prepare for several trips this spring (Texas, Canada, Outer Banks, Roanoke, and Massanutten). One is next month and I haven’t reserved my flight. And most importantly, I need to refocus myself for this new year.
Originally, I was going let it slides, like I have been for the last few years. This year was going to be like the year before. It is not far from the truth. Same old same old. I figured the previous year resolutions should do for this year.
However, after reading some other people posts, I want to give this year a serious thought. I lile from RunningOnFumes of choosing a word or phrase for the year. For me, I would like 2023 to be *resolved*. Hopefully, I’ll reach some goals.
SeizeLife at LiveTheMoment/EatTheMoment mentioned about 168 plan. We have 168 hours total in a week. How do we use it? I Googled and downloaded the spreadsheet. Basically, it helps listing out what things are important and ideally helps you to focus your time to have a fulfilling week. I will look into it and hopefully will use it.
Resolve 2023.1 – practice and use the 168 plan
I know People/cities die for lack of vision. I live by purpose. I want it to be meaningful.
The last few years I have been quite unfocused. I tried aiming toward a target to transition from road running to trail running, and it took over three whole years to do it. Looking back, it wasn’t bad, just me stumbling through life.
What does this mean? Running 100 mile races helped me understand pace degradation. You know I could run a marathon between 4-5 hours, 26 miles. In my head, I know the pace. Miles just fly by. Every couple hours, you get 12 miles.
But in a hundred mile, you experience the pace slowing down. In your mind you still want and hope to run a 12-13 min mile pace. Reality is your body is moving much slower.
When I run, I set goals, like by what time, I should be at a certain place. Pace elongation stretches out the time. a five minute wait becomes 10, and 10 mins becomes 20 and so on. It seems a step taken should be closer in distance to the finish yet would take much longer time to get there. The famous Zeno’s Paradox! Every step only brings me half the distance closer but never reach it.
This is how I feel with planning the last three years. Originally, things I wanted to do in 2018/2019, finally only got them done last year. Yes, what or why did it take me so long!
I still love setting resolutions! Eventually, I will get there right? I recheck my to-do bucket list and glad some of them are finally coming off it. Yet there are still so much more to do.
This morning I was exploring from 100 mile races in the Philippines! They have The Hard 100 – they give 40 hours to do. So it got to be hard. I want to do it! Now I am aware of it, it probably will take couple years for me to get there.
Three years ago, I would not dare to dream about running this 100 mile race, but now, ya, it is more about when I can go and how it will fit into my schedule.
Last night, I met up with David, my running friend who has been doing runs and races together this past year, and we were talking about tons of races through out the night. One of our mutual friend wanted to her first (half/full) marathon. We were excited of sharing our knowledge. At the same time, I was checking my schedule to see how they would fit in, because I want to run races with them. Our friend Siri has interesting idea of going to the spa and hot pot after “our” race — DC rock n Roll, which I haven’t signed up yet.
Marathons on my new lists to check out is Las Cruces in NM, Burlington in VT, Space Coast Coco Beach in FL. I can’t do the first two yet because of scheduling conflict this year, but Space Coast is a possibility!
Oh yeah what about my resolutions?
I resolve – 2023.2 – to not be lazy with my training, specifically waking up in the morning to train
2023.3. plan better
2023.4. sit down and get my Annapurna trip together. It is supposed to be this year but I am so scared with the planning
2023.5. put sydney marathon on my planner. I could definitely go this year, because my schedule is open, but need to take that step to make it happen. Also so scared about travelingbout the country. Going oversea isn’t scary but how to meet up with my cousins and auntie there, is. idk, it should be excited, but i’m shy.
2023.6. mexico trip: likely won’t happen this year, but good to dream to run with Ramamuri (Tarahumara). Caballo Blanco Ultra 50 mile in March. From The book Born to Run. One of my favorite ultra running books to read.
2023.7. walk the talk (resolve to get things done). Pretty much this year theme. Resolve to resolve.
conclusion: the whole post is about to get myself to make some goals and they don’t usually get done on my time table. This leads me to not make more goals. However, I should look hard and get my things done. So I made some new year resolutions. Let’s be bold!
Last couple weeks, a recurrently theme and more like a question to myself, was what am I going to do next.
I do know and at the same time not know. I could fake an answer, but I cannot to lie to myself.
For running, I have a long to-do list. I always wish I could share it all. I call it my rainbow table because it is in multicolor of order of importance of which race I want to do. I do keep a year or two of races on here, though the list is not as pretty.
While the list is like the most practical things of when the rubber meets the road, it sometimes does not immediately tell the bigger picture.
That is – when I look at my list, instead of it giving me excitement, it sends me a feeling of dread and being overwhelmed. Maybe I am doing too much.
I got to remind myself — The reason why we all do something is because we love it and passionate about something. At 50000 ft, I do love running. Even down to the street level, I do love it – like if there is a weekend 5k or 50k I do it.
As a matter of fact, this coming weekend, there is a 50k, called Redeye, and I signed up. It is called Redeye because it will take place on New Year day, after a whole night of celebration, and the race assumes no one has time to sleep. I am running it like it is a local 5k. It is local to me. It will be on the same course as one I did my Devil Dog 100. I told my friend Caroline, I had that course memorized. My feet would know where to go. She was wondering if I am ready for it.
The last few days, the top things on my mind is not so much if my body is ready for a race, which normally is, but much more what I am doing with myself on a more fundamental level.
This kind of questions pops up to me from time to time, especially right after a big race. Just like last time back in May when I had soul searching questions, I’d reread my older blog posts. They helped. I reread last year vision statements (or new year resolutions – the ABC. They helped.
What is ABC? it is not an accronym. It is just the name I gave to a series of blog posts at the beginning of 2022. The first one started with A, then B, so forth. I found time and again rereading them, reset me. They made me feel better. The gist of it is as follow.
I realize something of what kept me going this year and the last few years is hope. My hope rests on that I will improve and I will get to do greater things even though I am not there yet.
The fact is 2022 was not that great when I planned it. Nor has it been since the start of the pandemic. It is like I could not do anything. Now the pandemic is kind of over, I am asking what 2023 will be like. Could I plan to do something awesome? That I am kind of don’t know any more. Maybe I lost the meaning of what awesome is. Maybe that what 2023 is for me to find that out.
This is what I thought awesome used to be.
I mentioned some bigger things I wanted to do — some of them are near impossible, but some are definitely doable. I wanted to run across America, to run across Tennessee, to hike the Appalachian Mountain, to travel to Napal and do the trek there, to visit Alaska and paddleboat there, to run a marathon in Sydney, and maybe some day run around the world.
Granted I am doing none of these next year or even the next few years. I haven’t done any of them this year or last year. The easiest on the list is probably going to Alaska or Sydney. I haven’t done them because of the cost.
But I settled something closer to home. I am planning to do a marathon in Toronto. I signed up already. It is set in May. I got one of my friends, well Craw team member, (who lives near there) to join me. Caroline, also excited when I told this to her. Not sure if she is serious about following me to Toronto. I plan to mention the trip to the rest of my Craw team maybe, maybe, they would too, join me in Toronto.
What is Craw? Craw is (or was) a virtual race in which we run around the world from the comfort of our home. We are about two weeks away from finishing. Since the theme is running around the world, we should at least do some traveling. I set Toronto my destination.
Back to the bigger picture. When I wrote up my race recap (twice), I came to the question, what will I do next. My answer and I did not want to say at the time, was same old same old. Basically same as we always done. This year was like last year. Next year will be like this year. We race.
I was asking myself where is my excitement now. Unlike 5 years ago, I was brimming with joy then. It was until I reread my vision statement. Yes, there are bigger goals out there. And doing these tiny goals maybe in some ways gets me to the bigger ones or at least kind of replace them. It is just like doing the Craw — none of us will ever get a chance to actually literally run around the world, but if we imagine it, we do and could run around the world even from our own home. Yes it is not the same, but the illusion could get you pretty close. Doing the small goals, we could imagine ourselves doing the bigger ones.
I will leave it as that for now. I don’t have the answer. We try our best to find our next step.
All said and done, I hope this helps me and others to come up with their new year resolutions. By the way, I need to think up some. Happy new year!
I wrote up a list of all my races this year after running Naked Nick 50K, though I felt that entry did not do the justice. Here goes a 2nd round.
100 mile:
Massanutten 100 – May 14. Reached mile 95 but couldn’t finish it, mainly due to time management issue in the mid/late stage for aid station stops. Also I pressed too hard between mile 50-60 and bonked the rest of the way.
Devil Dog 100 – December 3-4. Redeemption arc. I finished it this time. It was a huge relief. A bunch of new friends I met this year came and supported me including Iris and David.
50 mile:
Iron Mountain50 – Sep 3. DNF. finished over 12 hours. It was a goal race and it hurt when I did not reach my goal. My fitness level was not where I wanted. I glad I ran and finished it with a friend, Eileen, who was more fit than me (we both DNF’d together). Also, got to meet Caroline.
Stone Mill 50 – Nov 12. Finished it under 12 hours. Ran with two good friends, David and Alex.
JFK 50 – Nov 19. Also ran with two friends, (another) David and Robert. Improved my 50 mile time by running under 11 though that was not my goal. Truly believe it set me for Devil Dog.
50K:
Catoctin 50k – July 9. One of hardest 50K I did. Almost took me 9 hours.
Naked Nick 50k. Dec 18. Ran with Coraline as a recovery run. It was one of most calm races I did.
Other weird distances trail races:
Pemberton 24. Ran a 5k every hour for 24 hours I did 20 5k’s. Was an odd race but it was kind of fun.
Lake Ridge 12h. Sep 10-11. Run for 12 hours. 2pm to 2am. My second time doing it but was a relaxing weekend with a small group of runners.
Adventure Trail – I ran 8 hours or something. Also fun to run through the night. Didn’t know I was pacing a top female runner (who were at the end of her 24 hour run).
Rock -n- the Knob – Sep 17. Hardest trail marathon. Took me about 7 hours. This is one of my favorites.
River Rock – trail festival in Richmond. Kind of relaxing. 13 mile. Fun. My third or 4th time there.
Marathons:
Newport News – first marathon of the year and finally was able to run this one
Salisbury Marathon – Ran with David and his friends. The best was having brunch after
Grandma’s Marathon – out of state. stressful experience in getting pre race stuff working out, but was a memorable race. Adventurous with only couple hours of sleep
Probility Ann Arbor Marathon – a surprise (unplanned) marathon to see a friend and also cross off one of the states.
Atlantic City Marathon – Unplanned, but got it done because I was itching for a run and got a discount. Met a new friend (Sanjay)
NCR Marathon – also unplanned because I was itching for a run. Had a good time to rerun this
Rock -n- Knob – technically a marathon, but it felt more like a 50k.
Richmond Marathon. Virtually done. It stressed me out for the whole month of November of how to get it done, and I finally ran it during the JFK 50. Only listed it here for completeness.
Half marathon distances or less
Bishop Half – June 12. It is a race I ran it once before and I relived the experience of last time when I ran it with Brian and the other David
Richmond’s Bust the Banks Half. May 21. Same race as the river rock. River Rock was the name for the whole weekend. Bust the Banks was the name for the half marathon. Of course, I was there for the whole festival.
Army 10 – Oct 9. Redoing this race after 20 years passed. Interesting feeling now I am a runner to look back when I first did it as a nobody
Bobcats Trail 11. Nov 5. A hard short race
Got Your Back 5k – I did a 5K. Probably only 5k I ran this year
I feel better now that this list is more organized. My main races were MMT, Iron Mountain, and the Devil Dog. I put considerable time training for them.
Other races kind of appeared and I ran them. Some I got to run with friends, which was pretty cool. Some I did to remember what they were like when I did them years ago and that was interesting to relive the experiences. A few were out of states where I get to cross them off my to-do list. They were also interesting in that I got to travel and experience running in new places. This sums up my 2022.
Conclusion, (2022 original plan) How do I feel? I am proud my races. Originally my scope was much smaller and mostly for first half of the year. After MMT in May, I tried to change it, yes redeem it or redo however you call it. My second half of 2022 blossomed and was many times more exciting than my first half, and of course all thank to being able to finishing the Devil Dog 100. Looking back, it seemed easy and was a sure thing, but at the time nothing was set in stone. It could have turned out ugly. I felt lucky.
What does it mean for next year? I don’t know yet. I had some races planned. At this point I don’t feel I have any sharp focus of what I want 2023 to be. I wrote about this a couple posts back, I am still seeking how I want to define 2023 to be. I have plans but they are just not that exciting. They feel more like chores to be done. We’ll see.
Our running group made a stop by the White House this past week to take photos of the National Christmas Tree. There were other smaller trees representing 50 states and territories. They are already posted on social media sites (not by me).
Last couple weeks, I also visited other christmas trees in DC. My running friend Caroline joined me on the tree run and caroling night with the DC Tri, but caroling was just a click bait for Caroline because none of us sing Christmas songs.
Those who found my other social media sites already saw some of the pictures. I’m doing better in “consolidating” or managing them. It tried anyway. I started twitter and IG. I restarted my tumbr. WP is still my main though because I like doing longer posts (journaling).
Xmas trees at other places. Canadian Embassy, Capitol and Union Station
It has been a quiet week. I did a recovery run (Naked Nick 50K) in Pennsylvania. Yes, I survived. I’m too tired to write a report. My friend Caroline drove me there. It was one of those first time trip going out of state with someone to run a race. Caroline loved it a lot. To me, somehow it was meh, a run. There were 500+ runners. The highlight of the trip was the ride there. We spent 7 hours in the car, and I ran for 7 hours. The run did what it did. It allowed me to “recover” my body and reset my mind.
I did couple other runs and mostly on a treadmill. Nothing spectacular to write about. Maybe due to laziness, I used treadmill (we call it the dreadmill). After the 100 mile, I did not have much motivation to run. Hopping on the treadmill for 30-40 mins is the most I could do at the moment. It is also cold outside. Treadmill seems to be a better option.
Winter Soltice has past. That means, each day should be longer. Apparently, it is a important festival for chinese. We had a family dinner. It is like Christmas – the focus is to spend time with family/friends.
Some other news during the down cycle and I am excited about, I signed up three races! Two of them I mentioned in the last post. I signed up for Seneca Creek Greenway 50K (March), Shamrock Marathon at Virginia Beach (also in March), and Grindstone 100 (in September). I’ll give my reasons why I decided to run Grindstone in a later post. It is more than because they had a presale, so I jumped in. For now that is a good explanation, but I am excited all these.
Peace on earth and good news to all. Merry Christmas!
I have been recovering well the last two weeks. I just have nothing to blog about. I was thinking of doing some kind of highlight reel of my 2022, so here it is.
It is also a time to pause, meaning what am I doing next. I know I have a bunch of races for next year. Nothing truly is challenging me except for the MMT 100 and possibly Teach’s Revenge 100 (OBX), though what I am excited about is the Toronto Marathon! Yes, I am thinking about racing all the time. I guess more to be revealed in future posts. Plus, I have a few vanity races such as Lake Tahoe, and maybe will do the CIM (California International Marathon).
So much have happened in 2022. I had a great fall season! Nothing new here for those who kept up on my blog.
I started up the year slowly, with a bunch of baggages. I was injured after last year Devil Dog, and I believe it sidelined me for at least 8 weeks. My mom was sick during November-December time frame that created ton of pressure in my family, resulted in a big dispute between me and my sister. I had hard time focusing as much as I tried to ignore the distractions. I tried to focus on the issue and not so much the emotional turmoils. Less talk/cry more work should be my motto. All in all, my spring training was delayed.
Then I did manage a couple marathons in the spring, Newport News and Salibury. I was happy with my results though they were not my best time. I love those two races and they were on my list for a long time and finally was able to run them. I linked to their reports. Then I ran the Massanutten 100 (MMT) as I was returning to a good running shape. Though I did not finish the race, but it was the high point because it was a hard race and I gave it my best shot. It helped later in the year. MMT was supposed my A+ race.
After MMT, I tried to reset quickly. During the summer, I trained and ran the Iron Mountain 50 (IMTR). It was also another high point to see if I could beat the course 12 hour time limit. I did not succeed but it was also a valuable lesson that I need to be better. And it propeled me into a strong fall season. I also ran Grandmas in Minnesota for fun. I had fun.
There was no time to be upset about Iron Mountain. I was not much upset by it. A failed attempt is a failed attempt. Do better next time. Yes, I waited four years to run it, but there is always a next year. Iron Mountain was not an A race, but it was very close there, like a consolation prize. (I don’t really plan for B races).
Things picked up fast in the fall. It was like I got an extra boost. I did a race almost every weekend. They were not hard per se but many were adventurous. I traveled to places like Ann Arbor and Atlantic City. They were places I have never been to. It is one of the reasons I like doing the 50 states marathons, to visit different places. There were many other races I did and they were all great, but they are just too many for me to remember and name them here. (I will try to find links to my spring plan, summer plan, and fall review and plan, where I mentioned some of them).
A few of the races that stood out were the Stone Mill 50 and then JFK 50 and of course the Devil Dog 100. They were my biggest races. I could not imagine of even doing one, even last year much less all three together. I trained a whole season just for one event in the past.
Devil Dog was the best because it was last and is in a league of its own. I can’t say enough. It was the most intense and most gratifying. My mind is blown away by it. I did finish and that probably made it a great year. It was as if I came back with vengence to redeem my last year failed attempt and the two earlier races of this year. I want to prove I can do it. It was a risky plan because the implication if I have failed again is huge and that was a reason I did not say anything about either the JFK or the Devil Dog, but I made a lot of noise about Stone Mill as a diversion.
I still wish though to give a list of marathons I ran this year. Originally, this post was going to do it, but I got bored when I was about to get started. Maybe will leave this for another time. I ran maybe 5 or 6 of them. The list of all my races is somewhere on here or the internet, but I like to make some comments and reflection on them.
Marathons do get easier now (this year). I did feel nervous when I ran Newport News, and other marathons but by the time I did the NCR (last one of this year), I was completely confident that I could finish. Even running a 50 mile is easier for me now at the end of the year than at the beginning of the year. My perspective shifted after completing the Devil Dog. I guess with trainings, the body can be conditioned to make the run seems easy.
I still remember not long ago, I was thinking how could people run a two marathon distance in one day and I was amazed by that at the Roanoke Marathon where some runners signed up to do just that. I get exhausted just doing one. I know it is all about pacing, but still to my early days, it was impossible. I want to say 100 miles too is the same but I think, a 100 mile is a different beast. Spoiler: I will finally attempt doing a double marathon in Roanoke next Spring (already registered).
Anyway, this weekend, if weather holds up, I will be doing a 50k “recovery” run (Naked Nick) in Pennsylvania. Should be an easy run. A race report will be available later. Question is can I do it? I don’t know. I only had two “runs” since my 100 mile race. When I said runs, they were more like a walk. OK we’ll see. Don’t ask why I signed up a race so close following my one hundred. I agree I am out of my mind sometimes.
ps. or fyi. Seneca Greenway 50K registration opened two days ago. This is my favorite. Also I am thinking of fitting Shamrock Yuengling Marathon in my schedule. Yes, time for signing up more races when I have nothing to do.
Race Report – Devil Dog, a 100 mile trail race, took place December 3-4, 2022, just outside of DC in Triangle, Virginia. I finished in 31 hours. Originally, I was hoping to do it in 28-29 hours. For comparison, the first place winner finished in around 20:08 hours. (Tara Dower from Virginia Beach broke the women’s record, as well as took home the overall prize).
Last bridge crossing and up a big hill to the finish. photo credit: Ram
Meta – I retold this in two different ways, so it might seem a bit weird. One was for myself and one was for others and because I wrote it at two different times, one was right after the race when my brain was scattered by many things and the other was almost a week later after I was able to have clearer thoughts and is more coherent.
This race meant so much for me and I felt relief to have done it. I am a bit lost for words of how to write this report. At first, I wanted to put it aside for a few weeks before attempting to write, but then I know I got to move on. There is no telling what I will be doing in the next few weeks and I might not be able to find the time to get to this. So, here goes, strike the iron while it’s hot.
I. A bit of a background, I ran this course last year doing the 100K, however, I did not finish (DNF). It was a heartbreak because it was unexpected. I ended up with a knee injury and a back injury and that set me back for this entire year. In truth, it affected my MMT training, and partly too why I did not finish the MMT 100. MMT is another epic race comparable to the Devil Dog. Devil Dog is the goofy version of it.
I wanted to redo the Devil Dog to redeem myself. Not just because I couldn’t finish it last year but to prove to myself I could still do a 100 mile race (because I DNF’d at the MMT race earlier in the year).
The question is what am I doing differently this year for the Devil Dog? I wrote out a bunch of tips in my last year race report. I followed most of them. (here is my last year race RP)
More importantly, I am a much stronger runner this year and also gain more experience as a runner, having gone through the trial by fire at the MMT and Iron Mountain. Nothing get my attention quicker than being whooped, a good whooping I admit.
As readers know, I kept Devil Dog quiet, both because it was a scary race to me and I did not want to think about it, and second, there were other races I was focusing just before the Devil Dog, and there was no time to specifically train for the Devil Dog. Once bitten, you kind of have a respect for the puppy. Though looking back, I was more prepared this time around, but before the race, I was still doubtful if I have what it take or would it be another DNF to close the year.
The weather prediction leading up to the race did not help. We were looking at temperature that could be as low as 26 F (~4 C) at night, and during the day would be raining. Wet plus cold means a very cold run, and a dnf kind of situation. This race is known for many not finishing it (based on the last few years finishing rates). This year finishing rate was 65% (45% did not make it). Mostly because many underestimated the course.
Luckily, we got a break by race day. The night before the race, the temperature warmed up to around 50-60 F (at night!). We had fall weather once again and to me it means running in a shirt and shorts. I have been breaking all kind of records in this season and it was at the temperatures I am doing well in. I like running in warmer temperatures. The race morning was warm. They said we had the full 4 seasons because it got cold at night (but I don’t remember much). The rain was light enough and lasted only “briefly” for 3 hours of the entire 32 hour race. Rain came early and that was good. We were not affected much by it other than the trail was wet and slippery. More on this later.
My two friends heard about me running this race came out to support me, more specifically to be my crew. David (one whom I ran the JFK with) took the day shift, and he was there when I was halfway through my first loop around 9 AM and he came back around 5 pm at the end of my second loop. (I will explain the course soon, yes it is a loop course). Iris, a friend I met at the BRR (Bull Run Run) came for the night shift, from midnight to six in the morning. Finally, I was surprised by two other friends, Dan and Mike, whom I met in previous races (StoneMill, Cat, MMT), who helped me on my final loop on the following morning and at the finish. I am forever in debt to them. I believe they were crucial in helping me crossing the finish. A good crew can make or break a race when doing it without them.
About the course, I ran this before, so it was not a surprise. In early April I signed for a 12 hour night race (AEQ race), there to train for the course. This year the course was slightly different because there was a new trail added and another (rocky) trail removed. The course is described as having generally rolling hills, some double tracks, but it was mostly on single track trails. People said it is deceptively easy but is not. Now having done it, I think it was not too hard. But that was one reason I underestimated the course last year to my own detriment.
limping into the finishing chute. Photo credit: either Ram or Mike
I believe most of the elevation comes at the beginning of the loop. It was not much but had couple hundred feet of climbing. Comparing to MMT this was nothing, though after we ran it 5 times, the hills worn us down. First loop was a few miles longer (23 miles total) by added an extra section and subsequent loops were 19 miles. There were just many little hills and they tired you out. I mentioned this in my last year report.
We have three manned aid stations (Remi, Gunny, and Toofy), and 3 unmanned stations (Alpha, Bravo, Charlie). Unmanned ones were alternated with manned ones. My strategy was run from station to station. For me, they were set about an hour from one another. A loop took an average 6 hours (for me). Of course, those who could run fast could do it easily in about 3 hours.
I stored my supplies at Gunny, Toofy and Remi. It means I was usually an hour or two away from my supplies (such as food or clean clothing) and not 5-6 hours like last year. Remi was the start and finish point. I liked the section from Remi to Gunny the best, even though there were some serious climbs, but I felt there were no hidden tricks.
From Gunny to Toofy, usually I felt it was a bit too long. It was probably the longest segment. It was long enough for me to sub divide it into two parts. It also had a lot of climbing, though still runnable.
From Toofy to back to Remi was the hardest section for me. This part is more rocky and has a lot of ups and downs. And generally not as runable. This segment was my downfall the previous year. I kind of hated it. Though this year, I did not have any troubles. I mentioned last year, that I am usually good with a long hard climb, but not with a bunch of smaller ups and downs. The constant changes of directions put a lot of strains on the knees and finer muscles. The third section felt like a roller coaster ride.
The first few loops were relatively easy for me. I started off easy because I knew the battle would be during the last two loops. I was not in a hurry unlike last year. Last year, I went out expecting to do a loop like 3-4 hours because that was how fast I could run in a marathon. However, one has to be patience in a 100 miler. It is more like a cat and mouse game. The slower is the better. I was fine with finishing a loop in 6 hours this year. I was able to run it in 5.5 hours the first few loops and banked those extra minutes. I expected the final loop to take 7 hours. I ended up doing 7 hours on the last two loops.
I was able to team up with another runner (bib 48, Jim), who has done this race before and has done many 100 miles. He was not rushed. I wasn’t either. We were okay with the whole field of runners passed us. Many those runners later could not finish.
We met up with many other runners, such as Sam. I haven’t met Sam personally but I knew of her name from various races. Jim was an outgoing guy. He was calling out people when he encountered them. He was pacing someone also. Throughout the race, he was always pacing some runners. When a runner dropped out, he would find another set of runners around him. Another woman who was doing a 100k also joined with us for a while. Jim was talking about various things. I just listened.
Even though I was with Jim, but when he started picking up the pace, I dropped back. I learned to run at my own pace this year. Jim, I suspected was doing a reverse split. That guy could easily run a sub 24 hour for this race, but he likes spending time with us slower runners. He finished in a decent time. He didn’t get exhausted like me on the final lap (and I think he did it in four hours).
Most of the Saturday was like that. I was in it for a treat (to enjoy). I just did not think much on anything and ran. I passed my friend Fernando. I met Fernando before the start at Camp Remi. We chatted, since he set up his dropbag next to mine. Fernando was not doing well because he started walking.
We got to a section of the course from Camp Toofy to Remi and in this section we were on a newly created trail, which just finished a week before. It did not have any gravels on it yet. It was just hard pack clay. With the rain, the trail became slick. Fernando and I could not even walk on it because we started sliding off from the trail. The trail was not flat but curved down (a reverse banking turn, you know on a race track, the track is curve down on the inside turn, so you could go faster on the outside, but this trail curves the other way, downward on the cliff edge). Quite dangerous. Frenando said what the hell is this. He was not having a good time. I had to grab on a tree to prevent going off the hill. I did not get to see Frenando again. He did not fall. He got to mile 75 the next day but was cut.
The next person I came across was John on my second loop at Camp Gunny. John was walking. I asked what was going on with him. John said his knees were bothering him. This was John’s 4th Devil Dog. He dnf’ed all previous attempts. I felt sorry for John because to me, it was likely John would not finish again this year. He seemed like limping at the time. There were still four more laps and it was going to be a long time to the finish.
To finish one needs to be persistent as well as being efficient in not waste too much time, yet not go out too fast. It means finding that sweet spot and adjusting it from time to time. It is sometimes hard to find that perfect balance. This was my sixth or 7th hundred mile race, but I had only successfully finished two. This time I was able to pull together all the prior experiences to finish this race. It is a reason I am so pleased with it. However, I am having a hard time how to describe that perfect pace. Actually there might not be one single pace, but you got to adjust from time to time in a 100. Mentioning this, because that what John got.
I saw John again at the beginning on my last loop. John caught up to me from behind. I was surprised. It was a WTF moment for me. The tortoise had caught up to the hare. John has perservered and he told me this was the farest he had ever been on this course (and I think on any hundred miles). I thought I was fast and John who was just walking all this time, was now about to pass me.
I was not doing well. I lasted through the night and on the last loop, doubts crept in whether I could finish. Logically, I had enough time to do it, but physically, I was tired. Seeing John renewed the determination. If John could do it, I must push harder and do better than John because my feet were healthier than his.
I got to Camp Toofy for the last time. The cut off was at 11:30 and I was there around 10:45 (not sure), I think, they were packing things up. My friends Ram and Mike helped me. They fed me and suggested if I wanted to leave my hydration pack behind (note, this could have been a ground for DQ for this race, you have to have a hydration pack or a bottle), since I was using a water bottle now. I found handheld water bottle is quicker to refill than with a hydration vest. They helped repin the bib on me. My two friends reassured that I could finish. I went back out with renewed determination. There were only 6 miles left and three hours to do them.
John passed me again the third time when I came out of Camp Toofy. I could not keep up with his pace this time around. Doubts again crept in. This final section was my Waterloo the year before. It took me more than four hours to get through this section last year. Today, we only had three hours.
I told myself I had to keep John in my sight. As best as I could, tried to get my walking pace up again to match John. Soon strength returned. I started over taking John on downhill sections. John was having trouble going downhills. I felt sorry for him, because he struggled so hard.
We both reached the finish line by 1 pm with a few minutes apart, 31 hours since we started. It was surreal when the race director handed me the buckle (finisher prize).
Race clock is set as normal time, 12:55 pm EST. Meeting with RD, who is wearing the colorful F* hat and is about to hand me the DD 100 buckle! Photo credit: Mike
I felt thankful. The one year ordeal was finally over. I was no longer considered a DNF at the Devil Dog any more. I’ve beaten the course. To others, the threat I would be dnf this time was nonexistent, but as a participant, the final lap got me into a bit of a fear as I raced from cutoff to cutoff and seeing my time slipping at each stop. At the last 6 miles, struggles were real that I started doubting if I could finish. I was grateful when I did it. I felt I lost it and was given back. The race was redeemed.
More than that, My several friends helped me through the race. I could not let them down. Also, I wanted them to feel the significance of what they contributed. I couldn’t have done without them! Without their helps, it was likely, the race would have gone down to the wire and I could have dnf. In a hundred mile race, a bad thing could magnify many times and same with a good thing. It is like investment, good things compound! Just a few minutes saving from my friends would translate to an hour or more at the end.
Dan and Mike were a great help at the finish because I could not walk another step after I reached the finish line. I was one of those who stopped functioning once it is over. My left calf was really hurting. Mike and Dan made sure I stayed warm and got me inside. Then they made sure I ate. Finally gathered all my things and arranged a ride for me to get my car (the shuttle ride to the other lot).
—- Now part 2 —-
II. What I did differently in this race? Lots of things.
1. Dropbags. use them fully. Never underestimate them. Also something new to me is to pack food at the drop locations both to eat during at the rest stops and also take something to go.
In truth, I over packed, but better get everything I possibly need than to be missing the things I really need.
I have enough supplies for the whole team and some
2. PreRace camping. I stayed at a cabin at the race by paying $20 more (not expensive). This gave me more time to sleep and not had to rush to the start. No need for a 2 am wake up. Devil Dog had a complicated shuttle ride system, so staying on site avoided the rush in the morning. This was one of the best advices I gave myself last year in the race report. I followed.
3. experience. is a key to my success this year. Yes having friends to help was part of it, but knowing where and how I failed in previous races help avoid making the same mistakes. At MMT, I learned the important of eating and having a pacer. The most important is finding the appropriate pace at various phases of the race. This time, I learned who to follow and when not to follow. Also not to panic when things were going downhill. Yes, Wisdom to judge situations. This comes from experience.
4. Being Efficient at AS. The idea of constant keeping moving yet also have enough rest and food needed for the run. I felt it was a balancing act. It is a key to finish a 100. This means being efficient at an aid station.
Biggest thing I learned is to pack your food bags. So when you enter the station that has the dropbag, grab/exchange food and trashes. Aid Station food is only a secondary source of energy to food you brought. Relating to this is Eat while on the trail rather than at the aid station! (all about the efficiency and constantly on the move)
5. One of the biggest risks in an ultra is the feet. Last year, I had blisters early in loop 1. This year, I did not have warm spots until the final loop (80 miles in). I did finish with couple of blisters, but those were dealt with post race. What changes were keeping feet dry and wearing old comfortable shoes I did not need to change shoes until mile 80! Last year, I changed at mile 20.
6. A strategy/technique – is not to powerwalk this time, I saved my legs until the last 20 miles. I learned this earlier at Pemberton 24. Powerwalking hurts my calfs. Powerwalking is good for marathons or even 50 miles but for 100 distances, I felt it worn out the walking muscles.
III. What didn’t go as expected and could be improved on?
a. packing. I definitely could pack much lighter. I thought I was going to change at every loop but in truth, I could wear the same set of clothes for the whole race. Maybe bring an extra set to change. Two sets are the most I needed.
b. food. Pack in small ziplocks of enough food for 6-12 miles. This allows be quick at the transition and to eat.
c. crew. Crew was a great help. It was a difference of night and day having a crew vs not having one. Knowledgeable crew is a plus. I was blessed with a team of good people helping me. Some tasks crew can help can be planned ahead. Otherwise, some of my crew members kept asking “what do you need” etc, and they were as stressed as me. When I answered them, “food”, there were a lot back and forth of what type, and how much. “Do I need anything else?”, so a lot time was wasted. The basic things can be streamlined and so less question being asked or requiring my attention. Instead of them taking orders from me, if I could get it the other way, of me listening to them.
d. injury. I was slow on the last two laps (40 miles) because my left calf started hurting. Two nights before the race (Thursday night), while sleeping, my left calf cramped up. I knew it would cause trouble in the race and it did. First three loops not much an issue. It felt a bit warm and sore. By forth loop, it started hurting and then a lot. Fifth loop it got worse. I finished with the calf definitely injured from the overused. I don’t know what I could have done differently. Maybe pack a heating pad?
IV. Conclusion. There were a few things here. I was glad it was a resounding victory. I corrected some of my defects and ran the race successfully and therefore redeemed my previous failures.
Looking just at this race on its own, it was a great accomplishment too, because it was an undertaking that required months of preparation and finally seeing everything coming together successfully (see preparation).
Many people, also did the same preparation I did but did not finish. No one dares show up to a 100 mile race and is not trained for it (you could run a 26 miles without training, but not a 100 mile). It was kind of a validation for me. I know I don’t and shouldn’t look at other people. Yet, it makes me feel lucky. Their unsuccessful attempts boosted me. And validating my training system worked.
(There’s no time to share about a runner who felt ill at mile 75 at 4 AM in the morning. Later, I checked the results, she was not able to finish — I think it was unsafe to let her back on the course, and the station captain might prevent the runner from returning on the course)
Some people really earned this. My friend, John, who year after year trying it over and over finally completed it and earned the buckle the first time. I was glad for him. We don’t want failures, but once we overcome them, they make it sweeter.
Lastly, last year I was a nobody running this race. However, through and because my dnfs many people got to know me. They were all wishing for me to succeed this time. Iris, Elaina from MMT, Mike and Ram, and Eileen at Iron Mountain. A whole slew of people wishing me success from back home. These people saw my struggles. They wanted so much so, they volunteered and did everything they could to get me to the finish line. I am in debt to them. They gave me hope that I can redeem my MMT race too.
There is a saying you can’t walk into the same river twice. In a sense, that is right. This year is not last year. The course is not exactly the same (I think it was a little easier). This race also is not the MMT or Iron Mountain. Last year, the Devil Dog was not even a big race to me, but this year it was.
I don’t know where I am going with this. The reason I like it was for the challenge. As prepared as I was, I did not know ahead of time whether I would finish or not. I tried to anticipate troubles ahead and planned accordingly. Sometimes things are unavoidable. I felt lucky to just having it done.
Winners get write the history. The moment I crossed over the finish line, everything brightened up. All the stresses were gone. The race became such a good experience. It was so good to finish a race. Mentioned somewhere before on the last lap, I felt the race was slipping away almost to a point there was a possibility that I would not finish. The euphoria of actually crossing the finish line was unbelievable. Immediately, the race was not that hard any more.
Overall, I was very at peace during the whole race. I met some decent people, Fernando, Watts and Jackie (no time to mention Watson & Jackie, but an amazing couple). Also, I was there when the last runner came in (DFL award).
Should you run a 100 mile? I felt it was challenging for me. 100 are races that there are decent chance of not being able to finish (in this race this year 45% of the starters did not finish). About a third of the initial signed up participants did not showed up (DNS, though the final results purged them from the list). There were only thirty plus people out of close to 90 original runners finished. However, the reward is so satisfying when you did it. There are still a lot for me to learn but each time I run it, I get better. Lastly, I run, so I could do some even greater runs down the road.
The Devil Dog is so much for me to debrief in a go. I might need some time, maybe some weeks later. It was a good race is all I got to say for now. Here below is an entry I wrote probably back in October (the airport trip) but did not get a chance to post.
I am at the end of a long series of blog posts that started around at the end of summer. At first I did not mean for it to be a theme for the fall, but now fall is over, so I like to close it with this entry, to put a lid on.
It all started when I had a lot of thoughts prompted by a friend of exactly why I love running (day502) and a lot of things were going on at the same time because I entered one of the busiest race schedule I have ever done my life. I tried to write them down as much as possible and saved them for later postings because I did not want to overwhelm the site with too many postings at once. There was a time I posted evert day, though now I try to keep to usually 2 posts, and maybe a third very short post, which usually announcing something I am very excited about, e.g., like the Waterfall 50K at the beginning of the year (WTF50).
I entered the fall season with a bunch of races. There were too many for me to remember. I enjoyed going to Ann Arbor. And recently I went to Atlantic City. This reminded me that I should do a post, listing just all the marathons I did this year. I think I did about 6-7 marathons.
I did a couple 12 hour/ 24 hour runs. I did the Iron Mountain and Rock n the Knob race. I love both of these races.
Then there were a bunch of training runs for the Stone Mill 50. The final report already posted. Originally, this post was to be published first before that one. However, I was too excited about that race, and posted that one first.
If you ask is there is a crescedo from all the races to a finale, the answer is maybe. This fall season is definitely something, unlike any previous year and I am not exhausted yet, and I hope I won’t burnout again like last year. I clearly remember by this time of year, I was. I have the Devil Dog coming up still but I am not sure if that will be the highest peak of this season. It will definitely be my hardest race this year other than MMT or Iron Mountain. These three races are the high points of this year (MMT in the late spring, Iron Mountian in the end of summer, and the Devil Dog at the end of fall (if we can still call it fall!) Maybe it will be a finale. I want it to be, but then who knows.
If readers did not see the hypes leading up, that is fine. I have not been focusing too much on the Devil Dog. I was kind of keeping it at a low profile and hiding it in plain sight. That’s right. Because, I am afraid of running in this race.
Now to the main topic, a few weeks ago, I asked myself whether there is a lesson in any of this. I kind of seeing a pattern from my running and writing reports of them.
I had reread some of them whenever I write some reports that referencing to some earlier posts.
In a way, I do know all what I have written but I am also so forgetful. To me, I am felt like drowning in the water called life, and from time to time I resurface and am able to breathe again. It give me a moment of clarity. Then I resubmerge in the world of forgetfulness again. This is not a lesson but an observation.
I also note my work and recreation is also similar. Work is killing me. My weekend is what restore me. I do enjoy my work but often time it is a part of my life I don’t want to talk about. We work maybe 5 days a week and we have two days of rest. My weekend is like when I feel alive again. Specifically, running makes me feel alive.
It is my fear that I will forget something like who I am and what I was doing. I have to write then down. There might be a brief moment of clarity in the middle of this. I tried to capture that. When I reread my own blog, I said yes, I remember now, that was what I was trying to do.
It is funny how fast I forget thing. Sometimes when I reread my blog, it was like seeing things for the first time. And then the memories from the event start to reform.
Also the stuff I write, sometimes they are repetitive. Maybe life is like that. We do things again and again. Maybe we go through a cycle. We often do not realize that. We have been there done that.
When I reread my blog entries, I noted that I want every race to be uniquely special. And Yes they are. Sometimes, it is not really so significant, but I make as if they are the best race in the world. They were to me. This is my sixth (and maybe 7th) year since I started running (I lost count).
This season, some races I have done them for the third time, like Rock-n-the Knob and many other races. There’s got to be some what different this time. I don’t know. Usually, I forget immediately after I have done them. I retain some vague memory. If a race is a repeat, the memory gets overlapped. I might mess up recalling which year is which. But thank to WP, my blog, things get recorded. It is fun for me to pull up a prior year race to do a comparison.
Couple days ago I was thinking what all my races could teach me or improve me as a person. I threw my hands up. They don’t teach anything. Maybe I could beat them into something of a life lesson. Because I spent so much time thinking about races, I see my life too as a racing event. But I don’t like to think like that.
Life is a race. We all running to somewhere trying achieve something. My bucket list items are like the Aid Stations on the course. Do I want to stop and get help or do I bypassing them? I hope I stop long enough to smell the roses.
I feel my 9-5 job is like running too. I work without seeing the end of it. My weekend is my break or my aid station.
I have been learning how to balance work and recreation. The time I spend at work, I don’t remember much. But the time I spend away from work is something I like to write about. All these posts here are what I do on the weekend.
I don’t know if that makes any sense. Sometimes I run without reasons but when I read my blog, I then remember oh that is why I am doing it. I think when I write my blog, I try to give meaning to my races. It is part of story telling, but in truth, a run is just another run. I could do them mindlessly.
Kind of an addentum: Other things that happened but I won’t write a post on, at least for now – I spent a weekend cleaning my room. Yes, I should do this every weekend. My roommate has moved out, and I kind of spending the time to rearranging the house and stuff. There are some long stories like we discovered a bee nest outside. I haven’t taken care to destroy the nest yet (I hate doing it because it didn’t bother me and bees are good insects, but my neighbor didn’t want the nest around).
Yes, meh, I don’t like doing chores. Getting my room to be what I want it to be is a big deal to me. I felt I like ran a marathon.
Second, the artists I supported on twitch have gone on a hiatus. This did affect my fall training in a good way. I guess I had more time to train. Why I brought it up is it has been a significant time and money sink. I was thinking to get some art for the house. This is open ended. I got some already but haven’t put them up.
Third, my car has a recall where the gas tank could fall off. Yes I should have taken care of that during the last few months, but had not. These are the stuffs that were on my mind, yep, nothing related to running, but real life stuff.
I guess I have to conclude the post somehow. Yes, these are real life stuffs I don’t want to deal with. Real life is messy. I like running and did a lot of them. Running is fun and simple. It was fun for the past season. There were a lot going on. We got through the fall season. The first post (on day 502) I had, I thought it was going be a brief interlude but many things since happened. Here we are.
Just a quick post to hype up my coming weekend run, the Devil Dog 100. It’s a hundred mile run. Ya. I only attempted like 6 times and succeeded twice. A low success rate.
Am I ready? I am ready as I ever will be. I felt I am much stronger this year. I had plenty of rest. My body is not exhausted like last year.
Mentally I am ready too. I hit with 3 DNFs (not finishing a race) this year. They are unfortunate but I learn from them and I think mentally I am tougher now. Devil Dog was my first DNF that led the series and MMT and then Iron Mountain.
Since then, I have trained and run harder. The Pemberton 24 gave me a good shake out. Stone Mill 50 and JFK 50, recent races, shown I can do it. I reached my targeted performance goals. Also a series of marathons: Duluth in Minnesota, Ann Arbor in Michigan, and past weekend NCR in Glencoe, Maryland, showed my performance is there. I actually was not pushing hard in those races, but my time has improved to I felt comfortable.
How will I do in DD100? Don’t know until I try. It is all game and fun until…its not.
Trust my training. is all.
What left is to pack tonight! and then run the race on Saturday at 6 am.
Weather: It’s Always down to the weather. Weather in the DC area is always weird at this time of year. Looks like we will face up to freezing temp at night (26-28F, a few degrees below freezing for my intl audience) and rain 97% chance on the first day. Not sure how heavy yet and how long. Looks like the whole Saturday. Nothing we can do. Was hoping the rain to move in early or move off till late Sunday, but the past few days only shown it is likely to get worse.
I brought an umbrella and two sets of gloves (one light one and one for ski). Both are waterproof. Yes, they said plan for the worst but expecting the best. Not sure how running with an umbrella would work, but I think if the rain comes down heavy, it might be useful. The umbrella said could withstand strong wind (rated 75 something, i dont think its in mph), so we will see. Likely I don’t need it if the rain comes early while I still have the energy to run. It will be helpful when I walk.
Thinking about drop bags. This year I will fully plan and use all three drop locations. Will be packing clothes, shoes, and food and drinks for all three locations. Get some coffee beans too for night the portion.
My friend David (whom I ran the JFK with) will come during the day time on the first day. My MMT or BRR friends, Iris, and her husband will come at night from 11 pm to morning 6 am to cheer me on. I think she’s actually coming out for me and not just for general volunteering. I don’t need crewing but knowing a friendly face or two will definitely help. If they are available, I don’t mind to loop them in to crew for me, but usually that complicates things.
I would have to plan out how best they can help me, like writing out a list of things I need to do at a crew stop (or lap): get rid of wastes, water up, pack in food, get wipes to clean myself, take care of chafe, lube up, take care of feet, shoes, socks or clothing changes, time check (how long the last loop, how long the next loop be, how much is used up, and specific food or equipment needed for the next section — like headlamp(s), gloves, jacket etc. Med kits.
Any way I will be camping in on the night before the race, so I won’t be rushing to the start this year. Last year, the bus got lost and we were an hour late! Luckily the race org delay the start an extra hour for us.
I am excited — stoked! Here we go!
My report will be available some time after the race as usual.
TL;DR – I ran a local 4 mile race on Thanksgiving and over the weekend did a marathon. They are thanksgiving related or happened about the same time frame so two race reports in one.
I have done this Fairfax Turkey Trot charity race a few times and yes every time it was freezing cold. The first year I did it because this was the only turkey trot that offerred a 4 mi run instead of a traditional 5K. 4 mi is a weird distance but I like it. I was looking for a “long race” to run. At that time, 4 mi was a long race. A bonus for me was the hills they have for this course. I did not go about choosing a race based on how hilly it is but it was so happened to be like that. It was just right for me. I love hard runs.
We had great weather this year. It started at around 30 F and got up to around 55 F in the afternoon. It was similar condition for the whole week because of the cold air / jet stream got push up to the pole. So it was like a final fall weekend before winter arrives.
I dressed the way I did for the JFK, double layer for the top and shorts for the bottom.
I arrived bright and early. The race did not start until 8:30 but they said parking would be hard to find because there were 1200 of us signed up. And the nearest lot held maybe 50-75 cars. There were no lots big enough for 1200 cars. Of course cars scrambling around the neighborhood looking for spaces. I was one of the first few to arrive around 7:30 to stake my spot. Then I just walked around the neighborhood until start time. I tell you, I was freezing, yet I refused to sit in my car. I figured it would get me prepared for my winter races.
I had fresh legs and pretty much recovered from the JFK50. I decided to run my best by pushing hard early to see where I am at. I did not realize the neighborhood has plenty of hills. After a few of those, I was exhausted. I managed to finish. I mentioned this because I hit a wall around halfway and the feeling is like hitting a wall in a marathon. My legs became very slow. I felt like they were frozen. Time for me was not important. I just wanted to finish and to see how I did. I knew I was slower than my previous times. I managed to finish around 40 minutes averaging about 10 min pace. My best was probably around 35 mins. I am too lazy to look up my other finishes (my earliest was 32:34 in 2018, and probably my best). You just have to take my words for it. For short distances, finish within 4-5 mins, seems insignificant.
Then of course, I did not feel good after running so fast. Originally I planned to go to downtown to do run with a turkey image on my strava (they call this strava art). My running group does this every year. We plot our run so that it will turn out to be a picture of the turkey on Strava. Yet I was too tired from my turkey trot, I decided to call it off. It would be a self guided run this year any way since everyone was out of town. I did not like the complicated parking in DC.
Instead, I went to a nearby neighborhood trail and was going to do my usual Thursday training run. However, I was too tired to run and only did a 3 mile hike on a trail called the Wild Turkey Trail. I called it a day. I kind of watching my body. I knew if I struggled I could put out the miles I wanted to but I knew I have the Devil Dog coming up. I should be tapering for it and I shouldn’t push my body beyond its limit yet. Afterward, I went home to clean up, eat, and rest. At night, we had our Thanksgiving celebration. I was super tired.
Part II. On Saturday, I had a marathon in Baltimore. It was the NCR race. I did this four years ago and I was happy to try my hand at this again. Back then, this was my first trail marathon. Speaking of trail, it was flat, and a fast course. I finished it in 4:23:00. Yet, because I was running with a bunch of runners on their championship event, I felt I was the last one on the course.
This time around I had experience of not to push too fast. I was racing with many top local runners since this was a RRCA (Road Runner Club) champion event. A lot of fast older people came out to run this (as well as a lot younger runners). Let say, a competitor, who seems at least 10 years older than me, yet finished at a time I can only dream (3:15:00). A woman about my age who finished at 3:35 and said she was slow this year, meaning, she used to be faster. What are these people? They probably running sub 3 hour back in their younger days. If I could run under 4 hours, I would consider this year a success. Yes there were a lot of fast people at the race, so over 4 hours seemed to be really slow. I am happy with my time though (if you compare it to my last marathon in Atlantic City, it was just a couple minutes off).
Not much can be said about the race. The swags were awesome. We got a premium hoodie sweater and we were given a wool blanket as a finisher prize. It was also well run. We had crossing guards at every intersection. We had buses picking us up from our parking lot. The race really was spread in three sites (runners parking, the school staging area, and the start and finish chute. Each location is about 1 mi to 2 mi apart. It was handled well.
The trail was scenic out in a rural area (might be near Camp David, i need to check). It was in a wooded area north of Baltimore near the PA border. There is a bunch of history about the trail but I did not read up on it. NCR is the name of the rail road company and rail line which now the track has become a rail to trail called Gunpowder Falls Trail (state park). It is one of the best trails I run on in the area. It is unpaved.
I did arrive early this time. I left my house at 5 and got to the race location (bus pick up location) at 6:30. I was one of the first one there. I went to a Dunkins and got a couple bagels for breakfast. This was smarter than the first year I did it. Also, I did not stay at a hotel this time and saved some money. The bus took us to the school (Old Fields, and all girls boarding school that seems to have a bit of history; I feel like I’m in a Harry Potter movie) where the start would be. We waited in the field house. It was a long wait, because the start was at 8:30.
The race was uneventful. I started off at a 9:30 pace but I got slower as the race progressed. I finished with an overall pace of 10:04. I have not analyzed my spits. My pace must have degraded badly around mile 22. My pace was 10:50 for the final section. I was running a 10:26 after the turn around.
I was mostly by myself. The fast runners all passed me during the first mile. This time I did not panic nor did I try to chase like I did the first time. On the second half, I led a pack of maybe 5 runners. Though I couldn’t manage their pace. With 10K left to go, they passed me. Then it was just me running to the finish.
I struggled around mile 21-22. I was bonking. The aid stations being about 2-3 mi apart helped. I was revitalized. The last two miles were not an issue for me. I was some what regaining my pace. I finished without feeling too tired. I believed I could still run some more.
NCR is one of the best marathons I did. It is not like the Grandma’s Marathon or other city marathons I ran this year. It was low key event but had great supports. We had a lot of aid stations. Many are well stocked with gels and drinks. Some had sodas. Finish line had the usual water and bananas. But at the field house, we had soup and other snacks and lot of breads that they were giving out loaves to runners to take home. It was pretty much a lunch in the field house. Not many marathons serve lunch. This is one of the rare ones that does.
I don’t know why I signed up for this race in the first place. I think it was because I wanted to run a marathon but I wanted something local. I think I did well. I glad I did it. See the 2018report. It offers an interesting perspective of my early days marathon run.
In awe 