Running Full Circle

It occurred to me tonight that my FIRST memory of running was in the second grade, as we were "forced" to participate in the Presidential Fitness Challenge. A quick loop around the baseball fields at Westside Elementary set the ground work for the next 30 years of my life and began a true love for running.

This past weekend, Jake also had to participate in his first Presidential Fitness Challenge... slaughtering the required time and other events, only to come back and ask to run the course again!!! We never know what the future holds for our children, but we always hope for the best and if he continues to run and be active, I know that he'll continue to make great life decisions and live a much richer life!

I personally pull energy from my kids as I run. Talking to them and asking them to "push daddy along" or just continue to chant "Come on guys, we've got this" during some of my darkest moments and it always pulls me out! Having them "with" me while I run is the single best piece of motivation I could ever have.

Hopefully they will draw inspiration or motivation to push themselves harder from my crazy running habits or even follow suit. I can't think of anything greater than one day being able to head out on a long run with Jake or Izzy and just talk away the miles.

I wonder if 30 years from now, Jake will be watching his son or daughter come around the final turn in first place and have his heart fill with pride and over flow with love. Hope he'll tell me all about it the next time we get together for a long run.

What have I been up to?

It's been a few months since my last post and quite honestly, the only thing I have written about lately are my race reports. So, what have I been up to? It would be best to rewind to a year ago and get caught up!

In Feb of 2011, my wife and I opened a local running speciality shop in Bluffton and poured our heart and soul into getting it off the ground. Mean while, I was also starting another company (my real job) Revenue Strategy Solutions, a remote Revenue Management company for Hotels. Both companies took off extremely well in 2011 and could not have been happier! Fast forward to the end of 2011. Holly and I made a decision and choose to sell the Running store as we were spending way too much time away from the kids and my running had taken a serious back burner due to being in the shop every weekend!

Within a month of solid training, I had taken off another huge chunk of time out of my 50K personal best and was THRILLED with where my training was headed. Holly and I decided to take another huge step at the beginning of December and moved to Ridgeland, SC. We didn't "just move" we found our DREAM HOME! A log cabin that sits in the middle of 800 acres on a private lake with plenty of room to start our own VERY large garden, citrus tree etc. We moved in on Dec 31, 2011 and have never been happier!

We had to make a tough decision about what we were going to do with the kids school, now that we were 35 minutes away - one way. We opted to put them in a local private school beginning next year, Thomas Haywood Academy (Go Rebels!) Izzy tested into 5 year old Kindergarten (she just turned 4) and Jake will be in the second grade. Both kids love the school and we are looking forward to a summer full of "camps" at THA including Art, Science, Sports and Cheer leading. Izzy is wrapping up her last "season" of ballet and is looking forward to playing soccer in the Fall. Jake is kicking ass and taking names on the baseball field right now!

Life is pretty good on the Waz front!

Back to running... So, last summer I launched "Lowcountry Ultras" when we put on our Cremator Ultra 50 Miler and it has boomed in the last year. We, through out the next few paragraphs will refer to several GREAT friends, with out them I would not be able to do what I love on the running front! My "crew" with-in Lowcountry Ultras is made up of my wife Holly, my two best buds Paul and Gary, and two completely random but awesomely amazing 3rd party acquaintances turned into excellent friends, Kayla and Joe. Again, without these guys Lowcountry Ultras would not exist!.

Our second race, the Delirium Ultra 24 Hour Endurance race took place this February on what turned into the coldest night of the year. With temps dropping down well below 24 degrees with an 11 degree windchill factor! Holly, Paul, Gary and I ran this race while Kayla and Joe held the race together as "Race Director" and "Joe". Joe is the man to get anything, fix anything or get in touch with anyone! The race itself sold out in less than 30 days and was full of awesome race swag, beanies, hoodies, kickin' medals and a lot of great people!

The day we wrapped up the Delirium I went straight to work on the second annual Cremator. We moved the race to Beaufort this year after having issues with the course on Hilton Head and Bluffton. We now have a straight out and back 25 mile loop that the runners will do two times. Gary will be the head-dog in charge for this pony show, and Paul will act as my Crew Chief.

In addition to the Delirium, we are also picking up another local event, the Bad Marsh 50k Night Ultra. This was a part of East Coast Ultras races, but Becky decided not to have the event this year as she and her husband get ready for their first baby. We did not want to see the race die off, so we picked it up and added it into our series. It's on an awesome 4.5 mile looped course and is on the same course as my current 50K PR. I'll be the RD for this race!

Personally, I'm getting ready to run the Palmetto 200 this weekend from Columbia, SC to Charleston, SC. It's a 200 mile relay that is meant to be run my 12 people. I am doing it as any "Ultra" with only 3 other runners, Marie, David and Ed. We should have a pretty good chance of winner the "Ultra" division... IF... my knee holds up.

A few weeks ago I was out for a run and I felt something... pull or pop. I could barely put any pressure on it and walked back home. I took the next few days off, icing and just trying to stay off it as much as possible. A few days later the knee began to bruise. With the race coming up, I wanted to get training if possible so I would go out for shorter runs 2, 3 miles at a time. it wasn't until this past week that I was able to run 10 miles. It's still bothering me slightly, so I need to run very smart this weekend as I continue to train up for Cremator in July. We'll see how it holds up!

Other than that, the only other racing I'm planning for this year are:

Palmetto 200 April 13-14

Cremator 50 Miler July 21

Arkansas Traveller 100 October

Mad Marsh November

2013

Harbison 50k (we plan on running an extra loop for training)

Delirium 24 Hour

See you on the road!

@timwaz

Delirium Ultra 24 Hour Endurance Race Recap

The creation of the Delirium Ultra 24 Hour Endurance race began in April of 2011. Once the trail was dedicated, my original thought was "there HAS to be a race on this trail". Over the next few months I tossed the idea around in my head but did not begin working on the actual race plans until August 2012. When I pitched the race to Holly (my wife) her first thought was, are you going to get anyone else to come run it? I knew that I could get Paul & Gary and maybe a handful of other local Ultra Runners to come out and try their hand on the trail with us.

The approval process was fairly easy with the assistance of Matt Green with Buckwalter Place and Julie Bulger with the Town of Bluffton. I'm not 100% sure on the next fact, but we quickly announced Kayla as the race Director (can't remember if I asked her or she told me that she was doing it). Either way, she was the best person for the job and would later be Teamed up with her RD partner in crime Joe Devito (aka The Man!).

We officially opened up registration on October 1 and quickly sold out of 50 spots within 30 days. We late added another 15 and again was without an open slot by Thanksgiving!

Along with Kayla, I had Paul, Holly and Gary helping out as the months ticked away and race day approached. Before I knew it it was the week before the race and things were starting to fall into place with the awesome Team that I had.

I hulled out the Lowcounty Ultra's Camper Friday morning PACKED TO THE GILLS with race swag, finish line tents, blankets, food, water and everything else we would need for the 24 hour event. Paul was the first to arrive, followed by Gary as we quickly got the course marked and the finish line set up. Kayla arrived and gave us all the thumbs up before I had to dash off for a "Daddy and Me" Valentine's Day Dance with my beautiful daughter, Izzy. A quick wardrobe change in the camper and I was ready to go. Kayla and Paul headed off to set up Packet Pick up while Izzy and I danced the evening away!

Once the dance was over I kissed the family good-bye and headed back to Station 300 to help close out the evening. Once we got the light positioned Paul, Kayla, Gary and I sat around and chatted in anticipation of the following days events. I was the first to call it a night and headed in to finally figure out my own race. This was something that I had given very little attention up to this point. Once I had something that resembled a decent plan, I climbed into bed and Paul and Kayla soon there after called it a night too. Gary went home to sleep in his own bed (smart man!)

Morning came sooner that I would have liked after not getting much sleep, between dealing with the filling up the generator, pre-race nerves and just the fact that we had all out race gear sitting on the side of the one of the busiest roads in Bluffton.

It was cool morning, but not freezing. All in all, we have had a very mild winter here in the Lowcountry, and over the last week we have seen the temperature forecast drop a few degrees everyday. We decided that we were going to stop checking it as it was only bad news.

Packet pick up went smooth, Richard helped with the parking, we had a great team in place once Joe (The Man) drove up. We had a few quick words from the 21 Guns Team about their mission and was sent on our way by Lisa Sulka, the mayor of Bluffton. I was the last person to start the race as I wanted to catch the start on my video camera. I waved goodbye to everyone, gave Kayla a quick high-five and a fist bump to Joe and started out a long, slow journey.

The first few laps were just a blur. We had 65 runners spread out over the 1.7 mile looped course so I was able to see the extent of what we created just after the first lap. From the very beginning I was sure to keep eating and drinking. Early on in the race I was using a 10oz Amphipod Held-held bottle and would top it off after every 2 laps and would grab food on ever circuit. PB&J's were hitting the spot early on.

Before I knew it I had run my first 31 miles and was feeling good. My goal was to run 100 miles in 22 hours and at this pace I was slightly ahead of schedule. I wanted to make sure that I wasn't pushing to hard early on, but any wiggle room I could muster up without draining myself would be worth it later. The field began to slowly shrink after 4:00pm as the 6 hour race was now over. Holly decided early on that she was going to run 30 miles regardless of time and she did in fact finish her first Ultra! I saw the big red truck pulling out as I was beginning yet another lap, so I did not get the chance to congratulate her before she left. The wind up to this point had been brutal. Practically blowing people off the bike path over the .4 mile stretch at the end of each lap. I decided around 5:00pm that I would begin the long process of getting ready for what would be the coldest night of the year.

Kayla helped me transition out of my low cut socks and into my Swiftwick compression socks. I slipped on a pair of tights and threw on a lightweight jacket. My body was still feeling good at this points and I was doing an even better job of balancing my fluids and nutrition intake.

I cruised through the 50 mile mark just after 9 hour and felt like a million bucks. Night began to settle in the laps suddenly felt like they were starting to get longer and longer. I was able to meet up with Paul and Gary on a regular basis along with the other amazing runners out there, but sometimes it felt like you were the only person left out there.

At midnight I was at mile 66 and all the pieces were right where they needed to be. I had 10 hours to make it another 20 laps. I should still be able to make it without any problems... Until the temperature really began to drop. But 1:00am I had on every layer that I had with me. It totalled: 7 layers up top (A tank top, short sleeve shirt, 2 - long sleeve shirts, a vest, a jacket and a hooded sweatshirt) and 2 pair of tights and a pair of jogging pants on below. The temperature dipped down to 26 degrees with a bitter cold windchill factor of 11 degrees.

At 2:45 and after 83 miles I had to stop. My hands were frozen and my body was shaking uncontrollably. I decided to lay down for an hour and told Kayla to come wake me up. I did not get undressed, just laid down in the camper. In a blink of an eye, Kayla was telling me that an hour had passed. "I'm done" was all I could tell here. I knew what the words meant but I hurt and hurt bad. My body told me that I was done and that I was stupid for going back out in that cold. Kayla tried to talk me out of it, but there was no turning my head around at this point.

Kayla came back at 6:45am and I tried again. I got up. Got dressed. Walked barefooted to the bathroom because I was afraid of my shoes at that point. Everything felt okay once I started moving. I put my shoes on and headed back out onto the course. I knew that I would not be able to make the 100 mile mark at this point because my "run" was a better version of a slow walk at this point. Paul, Gary and I knocked out a few more laps together which was a great way to close out this adventure together. The clock was ticking down and I wanted to ensure that I got every lap as possible. At 9:52am I was able to start another lap. At this point I would be the last person to cross the finish line and I would end up very close to my goal of 100 miles. I finished with 91.8 miles after 24 hours of running (20 hours if you count my 4 hour removal from reality) and of course I had a mix of different emotions about that.

First, Excitement, it was further than I had even gone before and we had just put on a great event. Second, disappointment, I let my self quit and I didn't meet my goal. Third, relief, the race was over, I was still walking and nothing really felt "bad". I was an emotional wreck as Adam and Dan from 21 Guns, presented a medal to the wife of one of the fallen soldiers in which they were running in memory of over the last 24 hours.

One of the best parts of the race was the decision to have a pancake breakfast right when the race ended. My mom was manning the griddle and it was awesome to have her make those for me when I finished. Once the other other runner's packed up, it was time to shut down the Delirium Ultra 24 Hour Endurance race for another year and head home to begin the recovery process. The race was in fact a huge success and we are looking forward to making it even better next year. I was just glad that I was able to experience the race as both the creator and a participant. I choose the date based off of the Farmer's Almanac and they said that Feb 11th would be the coldest day of the year... and they were right!!!

Thanks for all the help and support to my amazing family and friends! I love you all.

I opened up registration for the 2013 Delirium Ultra 24 Hour Endurance Race on Monday night February 13th and we already have 16 people signed up for next year. We have had some great feedback on improvements for next year and look forward to seeing everyone again at the starting line!!!

February 9, 2013 10:00am - Delirium Ultra 24 Hour Endurance Race

See ya on the trail!!!

Harbison 50K Race Report

This past weekend I ran my first Ultra of the year in Harbison State Forest just outside of Columbia, SC. The race was the second annual Harbison 50k put on by Dan Hartley. The race was top notch. Very organized, the course was well marked, the volunteers were great and the swag was pretty awesome!

Going into this race I planned to take it easy and just get the miles in as I ramp up for my Delirium Ultra 24 Hour Endurance Race on Feb 11, 2012. In the back of my mind I knew that I would end up pushing it a little harder than I should have and would end up racing the entire course. But I was going to try my hardest not too!!!

We ended up turning the race into a mini road trip with Paul "the hammer" and Gary "DJ Ice" and were spoiled by a huge three room suite at the downtown Hilton, thanks to my long time friend, Tony Tam. The trip up was uneventful and after a quick tour of the course and lunch at Mellow Mushroom we headed back to the room to watch "Unbreakable" and "Pre". Nothing like a few good Running flicks to set the mood for the upcoming race. We had a short pre-race meeting downtown at the Half-moon Outfitters, getting last minute race instructions and our race packets including our awesome shirts and Harbison 50K Pint Glasses.

I was the first to bed when we returned to the room and the last one up in the morning (but I needed the extra rest after moving all week). We headed out to the course at 6:00am and woke up to a nice 48 degree weather. Shorts and a tank would be my clothing choice for the day! No layering needed.

Another quick race recap by Dan at 7:20am around the camp fire sent us down to the starting line for an on-time race start (which is always a big deal for me!) The course would be two 15.5 mile loops with the first 9 being made up of single track rolling hills and the next 6 miles (including the nasty Spider Woman Trail) being much more technical and a lot more elevation.

The Aid Stations were stocked with everything you could want/ need during an Ultra. I ran with my iFitness belt with two 8oz bottles on the back of my waist and an extra 12oz Amphipod bottle
on the front. I started off with 28oz of Coconut Water (pineapple flavored) and drank that plus another 8oz of water during the first loop. (This is important later)

I started my second lap after 2:25.00 by topping off my water bottles with more Coconut Water, grabbed a few Strawberry Fig Newtons, two rice cakes and a banana. By the time I reached the woods again around mile 16 my bladder was full and needed to pull off the trail. No luck. I quickly began to run again before the urge struck me again. This time I was going to go as I did not want to have to stop again with only 16 mile under my belt. The sight made me weak. What should have been a "light yellow" was more "sweet tea-ish" and I felt a pain in my bladder like never before. This really scared me and I quickly went into a systems check mode. How much had I drank - more than enough - are you sure - yeah - two bottles, plus one with one refill plus everything I had the night before - I should be fine- then why does it hurt - are my kidneys shutting down - okay...just walk. Just drink.

I walked to the next Aid Station and sat down on the ground and began to drink. I was really scared, but I was on the start of a loop and would need to walk out anyway. After two full bottles (32oz) of water I left the aid station and tried to run by my bladder still hurt with every stride. My game plan at this time was to pull out of the race when either Paul or Gary came up on me, surely they would say that it was the right thing to do. I'm glad that I never saw them.

The next five miles were the longest of any race. It felt like I was going backwards the whole time. Every chance I got I would try to jog a little, just to get to the 20 mile mark. Finally I made it back around the loop and no longer felt the pain in my bladder. I was able to start running and I was still able to drink nonstop thanks to the Aid Stations that were popping up every four miles or so. The next 11 miles were not the greatest but I was going faster than my goal pace for Delirium and I was getting in some good hills too.

I crossed the finish line in 5:28:16 according to my watch and quickly grabbed my highly deserved and desired Hamburger and downed some Sprite-like drink from Kroger for the added sugar and fluids. This was 1:00pm, it 10:00am the last time I went to bathroom and wasn't until 7:00pm that I would go again. Needless to say my body was overly dehydrated.

By the time I got back to the car, checked my phone, Paul "the Hammer" was coming in to finish his first Ultra Marathon! You could just tell by Paul's face that he was thrilled to finally have the full distance under his belt. Smiles from ear to ear! (or beard to beard). He crushed it in 5:38.00

I had a text message from Gary saying that he was at mile 24 and that he was done. I knew that he would beat himself up (more than I would) if he were to pull out now, but at the same time he had to walk in to make it back to the finish. I sent him a quick text back telling him just to take it step by step and we'd be waiting. Gary then ran the next 7 miles in and finished the race looking great and proudly got his finishers medal and our second Pint Glass - the "Bison" Mug (a misprinted first run of glasses that should have said "Harbison" - all runners that finished the race got the second "collectors" mug!

After a quick shower back at the Hotel, we packed up our gear and headed home. Paul and I sacked out before we were even on the interstate, I think Gary stayed awake the whole time, but I guess we'll never know!

I finally got my "color" back under control by the following morning and didn't have much discomfort other than a sore tail bone (not really sure where that came from) 48 hours after the race was over and I feel fresh and the legs feel great.

I have a very short 32 days left till my next race, which is my own creation, the 2012 Delirium Ultra 24 Hour Endurance Race on Feb 11, 2012. My goal to run 100 miles in the 24 hours and I think the training that I have been able to get in over the last few months along with my racing I am right where I need to be. Now if I can just stick to the plan again and keep my fluids under control I may be alright!

Thanks to Paul and Gary for putting in countless mile in the dark and to Holly, my wife, for staying home with my two beautiful children while I run countless miles with Paul and Gary! I couldn't have gotten here with out you guys!

2011 Mad Marsh Ultra Race Report

This is the second year in a row that I ran the Mad Marsh Ultra 50K on Ladys Island in Beaufort, South Carolina. The race is put on by "Skunk Girl" Becky with East Coast Ultras and is held on an amazing course. The race is made up of 7 laps of 4.5 miles each. This year Paul, Gary and Racheal also signed up.

My race plan consisted of a very relaxed run and just run a controlled race. My mileage over the past few months have been less than "ULTRA" with my longest training run clocking in at 15 miles since last July.

The biggest change that I made going into this race was my new nutrition plan. I planned on eating nothing but "real food" through out the entire race and bypass the "GUs". I used my new iFitness belt which holds 2 8oz water bottles and started off with both bottles filled with Coconut Water (pineapple flavor) and a single GU in the zipper pocket.

Paul and I rode into the race together as we were providing the finish line chute for the race. We quickly set up the chute and got our group's tent set up for the morning. by the time we got our supplies laid out on the table it was almost time to start.

With a few quick words by race director Becky we were sent down the trail. For the first time that I can think of I did not line up at the front of the pack. Instead I held back around 15th in a field of 78 and conversed my way through through the first lap with Bob and Dave from Ohio. I set my hydration timer to 10:00 and would sip each time the watch beeped. At the 3 mile mark I quickly got an empty feeling in my stomach and quickly sucked down a GU (plan 1 failure). Over the next mile and a half I kept doubting my plan but the GU did the trick and I felt fine.

Lap one ended and I never looked at my watch. I quickly grab a "rice bar" and topped off my Coconut water. Paul recent gave me a cook book and we each tried a recipe made up of "sticky rice", scrambled eggs, bacon, brown sugar and soy sauce. The mixture is then formed into bars and wrapped in tin foil. Lap number two and three were all about staying comfortable and the weather was still pretty cool.

The start of lap 4 I pulled off my arm sleeves and swapped out one bottle of coconut water for flat coke. At this point I also began eating half of a banana and taking a strawberry fig newton with me as I left the aid station. This repeated till the end of the race and I felt perfect.

As I came into the aid station to start the 5th lap, I began to do the math in my head and quickly realized that I was somehow well ahead of my personal best. If I could continue to hold on to this pace I should finish 20 minutes ahead of my PR. Three laps equaling a half marathon is a long time to maintain a steady pace when you have 20 miles under your legs already. Instead of focusing on my finishing time, I just decided to finish my current lap. I continued to hold a pace right around 8:30 and everything just felt "right".

At the start of lap 6, I drank half a bottle of ensure and finished off the last half of banana I had left on the table. The weather was also heating up now. I made a quick decision to leave my shirt on but instead fold my bandana down to just a head band. I'm glad that I left my shirt on, because the windy got pretty nasty on the long straght aways. Now I was really counting down the minutes as the window to break 4:30 was still well in reach.

In attempts to save every second, the transition to start my last last was very quick. I grabbed 2 Fig newtons and headed out. My legs were more than fried at this point and it was everything I could do jus tto keep my GPS pace from saying anything greater than 9:30. I always talk to my kids when I get to this point to try and keep myself from backing off. "Come on Izzy get daddy a little farther" "you've got this Jake, we can do it buddy" my mantras always fall back to the kids and their endless supply of energy and it worked. "We" crossed the line in 4:26:48 with a new PR of 11:00 on the same course.

My pace was pretty consistant over the 31 miles and the real food kept me feeling fresh and the lack of caffeine did not have me crashing or jittery at the end of the race like I have felt before. I really liked the feeling of using the real food over the GU but know that in a pinch the GU still packs the necessary "stuff" to get where I need to be.

Total Time - 4:26:48

Average Pace - 8:31

Top pace - 6:27

Overall - 6th Place
Shoes: Brooks Pure Project Grit Size 10

Mile 1 - 8:16

Mile 2 - 8:28

Mile 3 - 8:32

Mile 4 - 8:10

Mile 5 - 8:02

Mile 6 - 7:52

Mile 7 - 7:56

Mile 8 - 7:38

Mile 9 - 8:08

Mile 10 - 7:42

Mile 11 - 8:00

Mile 12 - 8:20

Mile 13 - 8:16

Mile 14 - 8:22

Mile 15 - 8:18

Mile 16 - 8:40

Mile 17 - 8:46

Mile 18 - 8:56

Mile 19 - 8:08

Mile 20 - 8:34

Mile 21 - 8:44

Mile 22 - 8:32

Mile 23 - 9:48

Mile 24 - 8:34

Mile 25 - 8:56

Mile 26 - 9:04

Mile 27 - 9:16

Mile 28 - 9:14

Mile 29 - 9:26

Mile 30 - 9:36

Mile 31 - 9:04

Nutrition:

Lap 1 - 8oz Coconut Water (Pineapple flavor), 1 GU Roctane - Pineapple

Lap 2 - 8oz Coconut Water (Pineapple flavor), 1 Rice Bar

Lap 3 - 8oz Coconut Water (Pineapple flavor), 1 Rice Bar

Lap 4 - 8oz Flat Coca-Cola, 1/2 Banana, 2 Strawberry Fig Newtons

Lap 5 - 4 oz Flat Coca-Cola, 4 oz Coconut Water (Pineapple flavor), 2 strawberry Fig Newtons

Lap 6 - 8oz Ensure, 1/2 Banana, 2 strawberry Fig Newtons

Lap 7 - 2 strawberry Fig Newtons, remaining ensure and coconut water in my bottles

Great race, all the pieces just came together and ended up with a new PR. Next race: December 3, 2011 - Enmark Bridge run: Double Pump 5k followed by a 10K over the Savannah Bridge.

See you on the trail!!!

Getting things rolling again

A quick recap from the past few months:

Work a lot - run a little.

Actually I had a pretty good 2011 racing season even though it was too long. I raced in the Bad Marsh night Ultra in May, the Rock Creek 3 Day stage race in June and my very own creation, the Cremator Ultra Marathon - 50 miler in July. I was forced to take all of August off due to some pretty serious back pain which I was able to relax with massage and acupuncture.

I was able to kick my training back into gear in October by racing another night trail race (15 miler) and crush the field with a 1:43:23 and felt great. This was the first time I wore my new Brooks Pure Grits and loved every step in them!

We also kicked off a new routine of Wednesday night Ultra training runs with Paul & Gary. This always makes for great conversation and future race planning.

I decided (last minute) not to run the 2011 Savannah Rock n Roll Marathon as I just thought the race would tear me up without the solid base I wish I had in. No worries! I was able to walk down the stairs the next morning and with Mad Marsh coming up in less than a week, it was probably the right decision for me. Plus I got to spend the whole day with the kids - which is always a treat!!

My race calendar currently looks like:

November 19, 2011 - Mad Marsh 50K

December 3, 2011 - Enmark Savannah Bridge Run 5k followed by 10K (Double Pump)

January 7, 2012 - Harbison 50K

February 11, 2012 - Delirium Ultra 24 hour Run (Goal of at least 100 miles)

April 7, 2012 - Croom Fools Run 50 Miler

May 2012 - Bad Marsh 50K

June - Rock Creek Stage Race - 20, 18, 22

July 28, 2012 - Cremator Ultra 50 Miler

October 6, 2012 - Arkansas Traveller 100 Miler

Be sure to check out my latest race, which is about to fill up!!! Delirium Ultra 24 Hour Endurance Race - February 11, 2012. it features a 6, 12, and 24 hour event with awesome race swag!!!

www.lowcountryultras.com

www.facebook.com/deliriumultra

www.ultrasignup.com

Bad Marsh Ultra Race Report - May 13, 2011

Friday night was the Bad Marsh Ultra 50K in Lady's Island, SC. The race consisted of 7 laps, 4.5 miles per lap. The race takes place on an old golf course that is closed and the cart path has been removed. The majority of the race is run on compacted sand with 4 road crossings and less than 1/8 of a mile on the road. We ran the course clockwise as the June race will be run the opposite direction.

Going into this race I felt that my training was exactly where it needed to be and my plan was to train through with race without a taper to get ready for my 3 day Stage Ultra event in Chattanooga in June. On Tuesday morning before the race, I woke up with a "bug" that left me with a fever and spent most of the day with my head in toilet. I was finally able to stomach some food late Wednesday night, but still felt weak. I finally put together my race plan the day before the race. I would run 8:30 pace and just cruise through the miles. This would put me with a new PR of 4:27.00 and felt that this plan would be a push due to my last minute illness.

We had a great turn out from the PRC - Footbalance Racing Team with over 8 runners including: Holly Waz, Giancarlo Rodriquez, Paul Kiefer, Gary Davis, Rob Fyfe, Sarah Drilling and Bev Wood. Several other folks made it out from our running club to try the event for a first time. I set up the tent and had plenty of drink and fuel for our group to make their first Ultra event one to remember!

As we got called to the starting line for last minute instructions, I was still planning on sticking to plan "A", I even mumbled "8:30 pace, right?" to Giancarlo as Race Director, Becky Water sent us on our way, down the trail for the next several hours. The race started at 7:00pm and if all went well, I'd be wrapping up my second lap as the sun went down, just in time to grab my headlamp and keep cruising down the trail.

I think it's funny how quickly a plan can change. Two seconds down the trail I quickly switched over to plan "B". Plan "B" was a short lived conversion that G and I had via text the day before, stating that I would hammer out the first 4 laps (18 miles) at a 7:00 minute pace and then hold on with tired legs for the last three laps (13.5 miles). I found myself at a 7:02 pace with a HR of 150BPM at mile one and very comfortable, but I quickly became disappointed in myself. How could I go out and do something so reckless after being sick, not to mention in a race of this length. I comforted myself by reassuring myself that this was in fact another pre-race option for this race and that I wasn't just flying by the seat of my pants.

The first lap was very comfortable and clicked through the rolling course between 7:00-7:18 per mile. Around mile 3 I came up on a runner by the name of Eddie Demasi from the Atlanta area. He was a hardcore runner, which I'm guessing was in his late 50s. Eddie had started the race an hour before everyone else as he was in a time crunch. He had to finish the 50K, get back in his car, drive the 8 hours back to Atlanta in time to run a marathon the following morning! The prior week he had run a 50 miler in Georgia and I'm sure he's getting ready for some crazy race or adventure this weekend.

We grazed fingertips as I ran by, cheering him on with my typical "keep rockin' it, lookin good". I would see Eddie again through out the night, but what I could not get out of my mind the entire race was the ear to ear grin that he flashed back at me as he trudged down the trail. Eddie would pop back into my mind each lap as I passed our meeting spot on the trail. He continued to pushed on and finish in 5:32:54, then quietly get in his car at 11:30pm and began his journey to his next race.

Laps two and three were mirror images of each other as I kept clicking out the miles right at 7:05-7:10 pace and remained in the lead. I caught up with Holly towards the end of the second lap, and was able to cheer her on before stopping to refuel, grab my head lamp and head back out. My body still felt strong, but I was beginning to have a hard time drinking and GU's were the last thing my body wanted. I took a bite of a potato wedge as I headed out on lap three and my stomach told me to throw the rest away. That would be the last thing I would eat till I finished the race.

Sean Kennedy came up next to me on at the start of the fourth lap. Super nice guy. I could feel my body beginning to get weak from not eatting or drinking enough. We cruised through the next 3 miles together before my right thigh began to lock up on me. I backed off a few strides and then picked up the pace to see if I could shake the cramp out without stopping. Sean and I ended up coming into the checkpoint together after 4 full laps. Only 3 more laps to go. I still had a full water bottle and 8oz of Nuun after the last lap. I knew that I was in trouble at that point. I picked up a bottle of Ensure and my hands were shaking nonstop. I asked Kayla to open the bottle and I took 3 or 4 small sips. When creamy fluid hit my stomach I could feel that it was empty which hit my gag reflex. I was able to hold it back but I still had to get something in me. I continued to sip on the Ensure as I muttered out "how's G doing?" I know I got an answer but it didnt translate into anything that made sense to me, so I grabbed a watter bottle full of Coke and clipped it into my amphipod race belt along with the bottle of water that I had not touched the last two lap.

Lap 5 was bad. My thigh muscles were sticking out of my legs like I had two bags of sugar strap to each leg. It was pitch black at this point and I could see Sean's headlamp bouncing down the trail. I continued to lunge forward trying to stretch out my thighs, I turned around and ran backwards for a while, skipped, walked on my toes, walked on my heels just trying to loosen out my thighs. I knew that this was coming from dehydration so I grabbed my coke and downed every last drop.

At night, in the woods, every source of light looked like a runner trying to sneak up behind me. Out of fear of losing Sean or being caught by Giancarlo I started limping down the trail again. The faster I ran the better I felt. I knew that I had just lost a lot of time and wated to try to make it up, but not all at once. Lap 5 really hurt but I made it, but was now way off my pace. I limped into the checkpoint right behind Holly as she finished her race. She told me that she was done for night, but would wait for me until I finished. Three miles after I chugged the Coke it finally kicked in, I felt a little surge of energy and was even able to open another bottle of Ensure and began easily drinking it down. I had it in a cooler of ice and it felt great running down my throat. I finished off about 4 oz, replaced my empty coke bottle for Nuun and headed out, asking "how far in front of me was Sean". Kayla responded back, "about "Twelve minute".

Lap 6 went by really fast. I kept trying to figure out how I lost 12 minutes on one guy in only 4.5 miles. It took me a long time to do the math and figure out what I'd have to do that last 9 miles to make up that time lost. Thanks dehydration. The moon began to appear from behind the clouds and heat lighting was blasting off giving me a nice distraction. I kept feeling something run down my leg and I couldnt for the life of me figure out what it was. I then realized that the pressure had built up in my Nuun bottle and had popped the valve on my water bottle and the foam was running down the back of my leg. I took a few sips, but still could not stomach anymore. I finally took the water bottle that I had been carrying for the last 4 laps and began to pour it on my head, face and neck trying to cool me off since I couldn't drink it and I was tired of carrying it. My legs were feeling loose now but mentally I knew that I was getting beyond tired at this point.

When I came into the check point to start my last lap it was like a ghost town. Only the Ultra guys were still out on the trail and everyone had packed up and left. Holly and Kayla were on post at the tent and my only thought was, where was Sean. Kayla looked at her phone and quickly said four minutes ahead. I had a quick transition, replaced my bottle and headed down the trail. I knew that I had a good last lap, but Sean must be slowing down if i made up 8 minutes on him in the last lap. I thought I could catch him!!! Up ahead I could see a single headlamp bouncing down the trail. The moon was out in full effect now and I decided to launch a sneak attack. I turned my head lamp off and slowly began to gain on the glow of the headlamp in front of me. Over the next 3 miles I began to get closer and closer until, almost at the exact point that I met up with Eddie on lap 1, I realized that this was not Sean. With a mile and a half to go I put it on cruise control and floated in to a second place finished in a total time of 4:50:32.

All in all, the race was pretty good, considering. I was completely drained after the race and felt my blood sugar tanking quickly once I finally sat down. Getting up and moving around was not a difficult task, but I needed to get some fluids and food in my body one way or another. The race director's husband had IV bags on hand so I decided to man-up and go ask for one. I was able to
stomach a few orange slices before asking for the IV and slow began drinking some fluids and spent the next 30 minutes nibbling on gummy bears, chips and the greatest tasting Oreos I've ever had!

Lessons learned: Make sure there is fuel in the tank before heading out on a long trip. Last minute race decisions based on how you feel at the time can be implemented but at a cost. Running with friends is much more enjoyable than chasing shadows in the middle of the night. I'm in better shape than I thought.

Next race: Chattanooga 3 Day Stage Race on June 16th