What Happened?

Saturday, July 28, 2012, I survived the Big Butts 50K ultra in Jackson, MS.  I finished in around 7:30 minutes.  That works out to about a pace of 14 minutes and 30 seconds, which is almost as fast as I could power walk it.  Which is what I did for quite a bit of the last 19 or so miles.  I ran the first 12 miles at around an 11:00 pace, which works out to be faster when I was actually running, considering that the first quarter mile of the race required walking because of the number of competitors and the terrain.  After that, the heat and humidity sapped me.  I don't think it was my fitness (though because of my sporadic training, it wasn't that great. More on why my training was sporadic later).  My highest pulse rate during the race was 152, which I recall being a spike.  It did stay in the 140+ range much of the first two laps.  However, when I started on my third lap, I just felt weak.  It was as if I didn't have anything left after I had to hand climb up the two hills at the beginning of the lap.  I started walking shortly after that.  That third lap was the lap that felt the worst.  From that point on, I had to pick most of my spots where I ran.  With very few exceptions, I ran only when it was shaded, and level or downhill.  Sometimes I even walked those parts.  By the time I reached the 3 mile aid station on the fourth lap I thought I was done.  However, I found E. M. there.  Sometimes your sources of motivation seem strange, but you have to take it where you can find it.  Ethan had decided he was going to drop.  His legs were shot.  He was too old (in his 30s) for this.  I had to laugh at that point and say "Too old?"  He knew what I meant.  Under his logic, at 49, I didn't have any business being out there.  That's all I needed.  I started walk from the aid station with E.  I encourage him to run some, which he did.  The first time he stopped running, I stopped too.  Then I encouraged him to run some more, which he did.  This time when he stopped running, I didn't stop.  I kept running.  I ran most of the last half of that 4th lap, close to 3 miles.  I forgot to add that at this point, I was really afraid that I was bringing up the rear.  I had been lapped by only a handful of folks, but I didn't see anyone coming behind (that was going to finish).  I figured most everyone else must be coming up behind on their final lap or I had missed them lapping me when I was in the aid station.

When I got to the main aid station at the start/finish line, I told B.B.r that I thought I had one more lap in me.  She smiled and encouraged me.  I think it took me about two hours to finish the last 7+ miles.  The last mile or so, the out and back,  was especially, exquisitely brutal in that you ran it on the road with only 20 yards of shade.   My official time was 7:39:14.