Black Warrior 50K

Recovery is all in the head at times. I have no choice. I need to recover because I have committed to run an Ultra the weekend after my Mercedes marathon. This one’s very special as it’s going to be my first Ultra, the “Black Warrior 50K”. The name sounds too cool, doesn’t it? Black Warrior, like a Ninja or Samurai or Gladiator. It sure is going to be a battle more up top than physical.

Monday morning, this is how I am at work now. Off with my work shoes and an ice pack stuffed into my sock to ease the soreness.

Funny as it may look, like I said, I have no choice but to recover as early as possible. Do anything to remove the lactic acid from my muscles. Felt much better by Tue though. Hit the gym and biked for a good hour. Felt much better. I ran on the treadmill and biked 5 miles for the next couple of days until Friday.

TGIF. Managed to get off work a bit early. Diane, Kim and I rode together. Little did I know about the great runner I was about to meet that night: Ultra Jeff. We decided to crash at Decatur, AL. While we were on our way, Jeff and Amanda picked up our race packets. After settling down in our rooms, we decided to hit the Red Lobster for dinner. We exchanged our running resumes while carbo-loading. We all shared one thing in common: passion for running. That’s all. Jeff’s goal is to run 50 Ultras in all 50 states, and he has already completed 30 of them by now, if I am not wrong. It was exciting to be amidst my running friends who started running marathons even before I was born and are still continuing their journey. I was getting my motivation from the enthusiasm they had for running. I am truly blessed. When Diane told Jeff about my blog, Jeff asked, “Why do you blog?”, for which I had no answer. I’ll address that in a separate post later, but honestly I don’t have an answer and that left me pondering!! We called it a night and decided to meet at 6:30 the next day for breakfast.

6:00 am…it was cold. Pinned up my BIB and got ready for my first ultra. While everyone was eating bagels and stuff, I decided to just have coffee. Kim and Diane insisted that I had better eat something for the long race, but I didn’t listen to them. A costly mistake. :)

We reached the race spot on time. The weather was still freaking cold. 50K on muddy horse trails. Sweet. Met Phil at the start line. Only a handful of runners, unlike the Mercedes Marathon. Everyone knows everyone, like it’s one big family event. That’s the best part about running Ultras.

The race started on time and we ran on a dirt road for about 3 miles until we took a turn to hit the trails.

(Right in the middle. Bib 53)

Slushy mud as soon as we hit the trails. While some runners were trying to avoid getting their shoes wet by going around the trail, I had no problems running through them in my Five Fingers. It looked medieval. A primal feel. I loved it. Reached a small waterfall and I could see icicles.

Came to the point where 23K runners take the diversion. No turning back after this point. My “This is the moment”. Took a right turn and headed into the trail. Steep, muddy, roots, slippery trails. Found a runner whose pace was just perfect for me. Ran along with the pack until I hit an aid station. Guess what, I was hungry and starving. Met Kim and Jeff. Took their advice and had a PBJ sandwich. Felt good. From here on I ran pretty much alone.

Horse trails are very difficult to run. At times you have to share the trail with the horses; after all it’s their trail. Some of the horses were so majestic. The trails are not so wide but filled with slushy mud. On my way I met a runner trying to pull something out of the mud. Guess what, it was his shoe. The mud just sucks your shoes off when you run through it, so you can imagine. I had no such problems, though when you run through it, your shoes lose traction and you end up kissing the ground like it’s your beloved.

I kissed the ground to glory maybe half a dozen times. If you resist, then the roots will ensure that you do. Narrowly escaped bruising my face, though my knees and arms graciously took some. After all, what’s there to trail running if there are no bruises and dirt on your face? Exhaustion was creeping in. Steep hills were punishing. Legs were sore. Stood in the ice cold creek on the way for a couple of minutes and it felt good, more like a natural ice pack. Pace was falling down. Reached the 21-mile mark, 10 more miles to go, but the next few miles were all uphill. Sweet! Walked the hills and ran the downhills at a good pace. Guess what my next big problem was? Tadaa, I couldn’t pee. Drinking Gatorade and electrolytes all the way was a big mistake. At one aid station, though I asked the volunteer to fill my bottle with water, he refilled it with Gatorade, and I didn’t realize until I got a mile away from the aid station. My kidneys were struggling and I was getting cramped up near my waist. Found a stream and drank out of it. That felt better, but I still couldn’t pee. I was praying hard; He didn’t help either. It was getting warm. I was hungry again. The last aid station, supposedly 4 miles before the finish line, was nowhere to be seen. When I found it, it was like finding an oasis in the desert. Made no mistake this time. Drank water and ate a PBJ sandwich and some oranges.

No more trails, 4 miles on the road to the finish line. Wanted to get it under 7:00 but crossed the finish line at 7:10. w00t. My first Ultra marathon accomplished. It felt great. All that pain and soreness vanish the moment you cross that finish line. Just the sense of accomplishment. My first-ever Ultra, and I wanted to finish it at any cost and I did it. Finish time: 7:10:05

Garmin Data : http://connect.garmin.com/activity/25398545

Rice, beans, hot burgers and Mountain Dew were waiting for me, but above all, my happiness knew no bounds when I got the urge to pee. Huh, what a relief after 7 hours of struggle. It was starting to get cold again, and hot rice and beans and burgers tasted like heaven. We picked up our bags and headed to the hotel. What a wonderful day and what a great race!! Had dinner at Logan’s. Jeff would be leaving early in the morning. We called it a night and would soon be meeting in our next big race, “Land Between the Lakes 50 Miles”. Huh, call me nuts!