50 miles..........Check! √

Yesterday I was able to check the 50 miler off my To-Do list at the Autumn Leaves 50M/50k/10k in Champoeg State Park (pronounced shampoo-ee), just south of Portland. The mostly paved course consists of approximately 5 mile loops. There's about 1 mile of dirt, but I'd still consider this a road race. There was an aid station at the start/finish and one on the course, so runners were very well-supported.

Although the drive from our house is only about 45 minutes, we decided to head down the night before and stay in one of the little cabins at the campground. That way I could roll out of bed for the 6 am early start and Marc and the little guy would have somewhere to hang out before Marc's 10 am start for the 10k. And he could get a shower before spending the afternoon waiting for me to finish. It turned out to be a beautiful fall day for both runners and spectators.

I ran the first loop with fellow Maniacs Bret, Gail and Rick. A guy running his first 50k tagged along with us. He hadn't brought a light and he would have been in big trouble if he had been by himself. I didn't catch his name and didn't get a good look at him in the dark so I'm not sure how he did. It was really cold (30's) and foggy, but I felt pretty good in my skirt, short sleeves, lightweight Hind jacket, head band and gloves.

On the second loop the light was starting to appear in the sky and we could turn off our lights. The most beautiful sight of the day was seeing the sunrise through the trees over the lifting fog from the meadows. During the second loop we discovered some ambiguous course markings. On the first loop it was too dark to really see that we had gone the wrong way. When I finished the second loop I found Fritz, the RD, and found out that we had been adding on about 1/4 mile. One of the signs was just a little bit off, but he went out and fixed it. What kind of ultra would it be without some bonus mileage! But overall, the race was very well organized and the course easy to follow.

I don't really remember much about loops 3 and 4. When I finished loop 3 I was ready to drop my headband, but Tom R. was working the aid station. He took care of me and got me out so quickly I forgot to leave it. I felt like a rock star! But no worries since there was still a bit of a chill in the air.

On loop 5 I was starting to feel a little sluggish and stiff. That got me worried since I was only approaching the half way mark. At the end of 5 I took come ibuprofen, which I've never done before in a race. It seemed to help, because I went on to have my best loop on Loop 6. It was also great to come into the start/finish aid and hear Olga, the official timer, call out my name from 100 yards away. I pity the person standing next to her when she gives out a yell. That woman has lungs! Thanks Olga for all your encouragement.

First two pictures by Tom Riley...more here

Loop 7 was a bit emotional for me. My 103 yr old grandmother (and my last living grandparent) had passed away 2 weeks ago. I had chosen not to attend her out-of-state memorial service, which started at 1 pm, just about the same time I was starting loop 7. But I had my own personal memorial service for her out on the course. Thinking about her made me realize what a precious gift life is. She had lived a long and productive life and I dedicated my ability to run 50 miles, on one of the most beautiful days of the year, to her.

Loop 8 and 9 were the worst for me. I thought my fueling had been on track, but my stomach really went south on these two loops. During the first 5 loops I drained a bottle of Accelade or water each loop, had a gel and an S-cap at the start/finish aid and something solid each time I passed the on-course aid. I also pee'd once each lap, which is more than I usually do. I'm still figuring out what went wrong, but I suspect that gels just don't agree with me over the long haul. Or maybe I need more plain water. I also wonder if the ibuprofen could have affected my hydration. Anyway I was definitely getting dehydrated the last few laps. I tried to grab at least a few pretzels and started drinking cola, which helped.

On loop 10 I was definitely feeling like I was going to do this. Actually I never once felt like I couldn't do it. But by this time I was the horse smelling hay. I started saying good-bye to the landmarks I'd been looking at for the past 45 miles. I knew I had enough energy in the tank to finish so didn't worry about putting too much more in my stomach and just drank cola. I really wanted to finish below the official cut-off of 10-1/2 hours and had held off from walking too much, thinking I'd save the walking for the last loop. But I surprised myself by not wanting to walk that much. Overall, I pretty much ran the whole thing, except for walking out of the aid stations and on a few small hills here and there.


I came in at about 10:06:30 by my watch and got my medal and belt buckle, and of course, my hug from Olga. It felt good to finish! We hung around for another 45 minutes to see Bret and Gail finish. Also got to chat with Olga and saw some of the WA Maniac/bloggers Eric, Michelle and Jenny. Rob was still out on the course and we had to leave before he finished. I have to give him credit for taking on the 50 miler.

Today I feel surprisingly good. No unusual pains, only slightly sore, and not tired, tired like I felt after Sisters two weeks ago. I feel pretty good about my run. I hit a new 50k PR along the way too....I think about 6:03. I'd like to solve the stomach issues because that's the only thing that really takes the joy out of running for me. But that will probably come with more training and experience. My schedule is empty now until Hagg Lake in February. But I'm looking at the Christmas marathon in December.......

Here's a quote I really like that I've added to my sidebar:

"The tragedy of life doesn't lie in not reaching your goal. The tragedy lies in having no goal to reach." -- Benjamin E. Mays