Mississippi 50 Miler

Four days removed and I am still trying to process the Mississippi 50 Mile Endurance Run. Last Friday, my sweet wife and I drove down to Laurel, Mississippi so I could take a shot at a 50 mile race. The trip down, with one exception, was really quite nice. Grandmother and Nanna graciously took the kids so, it was just us.

Oh yeah...the aforementioned "exception". If you'll recall, the wind was blowing like crazy last Friday. I was helping Will get into the suburban when a huge gust of wind blew the door shut on my leg and pinned it between the door and running board. OUCHIE! I thought, all at once, the race was over before it started. All that training and anticipation...gone. But, other than an egg shaped bruise, the shin didn't give me too much trouble at the race.

After a great dinner...and LOTS of rain, we headed back to the hotel to get my drop bag ready for the race. Gu, socks, pretzels, duck tape, wet wipes, extra water bottles...etc... Bedtime was 10:30 and wake up was 3:30. Banana, two pop tarts, HEED and half a cup of coffee for breakfast and we were off to the start. The drive to the start was around 30 minutes. Rain was intermittent by this time and the temp was around 40 degrees. Everyone seemed to be in good spirits despite the weather and darkness. I was really happy to be starting the race with Kam and Gene. The morning got even better when I found my friend Josh a the start. Some other familiar (and strong) runners showed up (Kevin and Emily)and we all dumped our drop bags and gathered around the start. A couple of short minutes later...we were running. I never heard the starter say go...but "go" we did.

So, I'm not going to give a mile by mile report. But, generally the course wet, wet, wet and a bit more hilly than advertised. The main thing I wanted to do throughout the day was keep my mind under control. The FIRST time i lost that battle was around miles 18-20 when my brain said "you don't have much effort left in your body dude". Of course, a little panic set in when i thought..."oh, how nice...only 30 more miles to go". But, fortunately, that sinking spell was short lived and before I knew it, the halfway point came and went. Seeing (and kissing) Karen at the aid station and having her lie about how great and strong I was looking was a HUGE lift! She killed her first "crewing" job ;)

So, around the marathon mark, I was feeling really really good and that lasted for several miles. I never really fell off the wagon again after that but there were definitely some low points on the way in. The aid stations were really helpful...super great people with well stocked food and drink. Having had all the gel i could possibly stomach around mile 30, I started sampling the aid station food. That means: PBJ sandwiches, cheese its, pretzels, candy bar (bite size), chex-mix and oranges. I had no GI problems at all...PTL!

There were only two shoe changes during the race. I really needed a third change but just couldn't do it. I'm not sure why though. It was either frozen fingers or simply the fact that I couldn't wrap my mind around such a complicated task after 40 miles of running. Either way...my dogs were barking LOUDLY from 43-50. Fortunately, God saw fit to send me a running gift and Aaron miraculously appeared the last 10 miles. We spend those final miles tricking our bodies into some pretty cruel punishment. Once we hit mile 44, the gravitational pull of the finish line kicked in and we really began to get...well...giddy. We began running harder and the mud became less of an obstacle.

Before long...it was over. I crossed the line. The RD was there to shake my hand and some complete strangers clapped for me and offered genuine congratulations. It was really a very satisfying moment. Hugged Karen, my sister and Kam. Josh (who stayed around after his finish some 45 minutes earlier) came over to chat. He was telling me how proud he was and that he knew i could finish. He, and everyone else, said some other stuff but, honestly, i was coming in and out of consciousness at that point and just wanted to sit down. Hugged Josh and wished him luck for his marathon the next morning (Freak) and then sat down to wait for Gene to come in.....BIG MISTAKE....recovery blog COMING SOON.

Race Report: An Ultramarathon First...JJ50K

Several weeks ago I was having the first of many lunches with Josh Holmes. Someone told me he was "into running crazy distances" and I thought "well, in that case, I need to hang out with this guy." We sat down at a restaurant in Jackson, TN and, after small talk, I said something like..."So, I signed up to run 50 miles in March and, last Saturday, I dropped out of St. Jude Marathon at mile 18 with an injury." Expecting something like, "dude, you may want to rethink the whole run for 50 miles thing...you do realize that's like running from this restaurant to Memphis???", I was shocked when he said, "Lets do it...how can I help?". For the next hour or so we sat and talked about running...different races...different distances...different locations...different nutrition...different gear. It was great!! No matter what it is you are into, there is something really special when you can spend time with others who "get it". I left that conversation with lots of determination and a very VERY loose plan on how to get my body ready for an endurance race.

A few weeks (and miles) later, I was looking over my training schedule and started thinking that maybe a 50Miler was a bit much for my first Ultra and that, since I was going to have a training run of 26-30 miles anyway, why not find a 50K and get some race experience (and, of course, a shirt and medal). I told Josh about this and he immediately started looking round for races. Unfortunately, all the races we found were either bad dates or full. Again, thinking I would get a "better luck next time" response...Josh said "what if we just create a race and invite some folks?". And so, the Jackson Jackass 50K was born (at least in Josh's brain).

Privately, I was hoping for, at least, eight runners. Why eight? I'm not really sure, I think I just thought that would give the race some legitimacy and I knew better than to hope that ten people would show up in West Tennessee in February to run a hilly trail 50K. Well, at least one that had only been planned for about 30 days and was the first time anyone had ever held an ultra in Jackson. After Josh started sending out invitations, I began getting texts from him..."five runners are in for JJ50K"..."2 more"..."Lisa from California is in"..."Dallas Smith, Ultra Legend, running JJ50K!!!!"..."just got 16 and 17"..."dude, race is full, folks still asking for a bib". It was Nuts!! Twenty (TWENTY!!) people signed up in about two weeks and Josh was having to turn folks away. Not just any runners either...serious ultra running vets! There were something like 336 marathons and ultras between the top 10 runners. Folks from Tennessee, Mississippi, Kentucky and California were set to run on February 4, 2012.

The week before the race was great! I pulled back on the miles I was logging and my body was repairing itself nicely. There was tons of chatter on Twitter and everyone seemed really excited about the race. By mid-week we were all very well aware that the forecast for the weekend was rain...and lots of it! Not that big of a deal for a road race...but a hilly dirt trail is a different animal when one adds water.

My alarm was set for 5:30am which was completely unnecessary. The rain and my nerves dragged me out of the bed around 5. I immediately ate two bananas and started in on my pop tarts. I was sipping coffee and being sure I had everything I might need for the day (GU, pretzels, dry socks, 2nd pair shoes, Nuun, needle/tape for blisters...etc). I did a little stretching and moved from coffee to HEED...checked Twitter, weather and text messages. Got some great texts that morning...some funny and some inspirational. Honestly, I had a great morning getting ready for the race and, in the back of my mind I was thinking that this could be a really good day. considering the pain I was anticipating, this was a happy mental place to be ;)

When I got to the trail, Josh, Naresh, Estes and Jeff were carrying water the the make-shift RD tent and so I grabbed some water and hiked up the trail. It was WET!! Water standing everywhere and the rain still coming down. Runners started trickling in and everyone was milling around and shaking hands. Before I knew it, Josh said..."okay, y'all back up over here...everyone smile for a picture..." After a few pics, we were given some general instructions and then Naresh said..."GO!". We were of...SPLASH...SPLASH...SPLASH!!!

Fortunately, I was familiar with the trail and I knew it was going to be really tough footing. Some others were having a difficult time adjusting but, after a lap (4.3 mileS) or so, everyone seemed to have their trail legs under them and the falls began to decrease. On my second lap, I was THRILLED to see Karen, Ella and Will (wife/kids)!!! Kids were yelling "GO DADDY!!!" Karen was taking pics...and for the next several miles I was mentally preoccupied with their sweet faces and encouragement. I was also completely blown away that my brave wife had gotten those two kids out on wet trail and crossed a foot-bridge without falling in the pond or ditch.



The loop course was great because, every once in a while, I would see someone on another part of the trail and we could yell at each other and exchange quick stories of some seriously epic falls. Comic relief was GOOD! I felt really good throughout loop four and five wasn't quite the monster I expected it to be. The aid station was my oasis for the day. Pulling in there to refuel a get some coaching and encouragement from Naresh was an instant battery charge. I'm not sure I've ever met someone who could be so ridiculously kind and sensitive to a runner's needs and yet so motivating at the same time. Naresh is just one of the many great people and runners I met this past weekend! REALLY REALLY good people!

Maybe the biggest surprise for me was the finish. Don't get me wrong...it was great and I had an overwhelming sense of accomplishment. But, it was over! I realized at that moment that running (just like most things in life) is mostly about the process and not the result. Sure, the medal is great, but I'd give it back in a second if I had to choose between it and the training, planning, discussions, relationships and experiences.

While I have plenty to be thankful for, my sweet wife tops the list! All those Saturdays and Sundays when I was gone...for hours...she was at home keeping peace and taking care of these two!!



Sure, I made lots of sacrifices to train and prepare. But in the end, I got to receive the benefit of the experience. Karen sacrificed even more...and not so that she could benefit, but so that I could. There's not a medal big enough for that!

All in all, this was an amazing experience! A great race with great people...Thanks a ton to everyone who played a part!