I haven't written a race report in awhile, but I wrote this one for our local running club newsletter. The newsletter version will probably be shorter and edited but you get the "rough draft." :-)
Many thanks to Doug and our Mangum Track Club buddies and the wonderful volunteers and other runners for supporting us through this unique adventure!
Race information, results, and a few pictures here:
Hot Time 100 (by Anita Finkle) “I understand that the race director may make up rules as necessary and the new rules could be retroactive….. I come to this event expecting nothing from anyone except myself…... I look forward with enthusiasm to this chance to test myself yet again, and to struggle and hurt for 100 miles to prove that I am as tough as I think I am.” These are a few excerpts from the waiver on the entry form of the Hot Time 100 (yes, 100 miles) which took place the weekend of June 27-28 in Hoffman, NC. Of course Jay and I could not resist signing up, especially since our friend Doug Dawkins was the Race Director and it was a bargain at only 25 cents per mile. The course consisted of a double loop, somewhat in the shape of a figure eight. Each “half loop” was approximately 3.6 miles and each full lap was approximately 7.2 miles. To complete the full 100+ mile distance would require 14 full laps. One advantage of this setup was that we ran past our vehicle and any aid we chose to bring every half loop. There was also a building with restrooms available and coolers full of cold water and Gatorade provided by the race director. Jay and I set up a canopy and table with lawn chairs, changes of clothes, shoes, and socks, sunscreen, bugspray, snacks, salt caplets, and coolers. We wore our Camelbaks for additional water. Approximately 20 runners started at 6am Saturday. Many of us knew each other and the early miles were spent learning the course layout, chatting with our running buddies, and enjoying some relatively easy miles before the temperature rose. The course was on a game preserve and consisted of dirt roads and trails in the appropriately named “sandhills” area of North Carolina. I was pleasantly surprised by the beauty and variety of the vegetation. The course was marked with yellow streamers and with signs with arrows at major turns. The Race Director had put up some signs right along the edge of the course identifying “poison oak.” All of the plants started to look like poison oak to me and I was hoping I could time my bathroom breaks for the “real” bathrooms at the end of each loop rather than take my chances of squatting in the wrong place. There were also numerous ant hills and aggressive biting flies. I reapplied bugspray and sunscreen almost every loop. The scenery and camaraderie in these early miles were pleasant and I thought about how lucky I am to have the fitness and health to be able to run events like this and to have such great friends to share the experience with. There were probably more volunteers than runners cheering us on, refilling the coolers of water and Gatorade, and counting our laps. My husband Jay and I ran a few of the early miles together and we enjoyed each other’s company as always. Some sections of the course consisted of deep, soft sand and I told Jay it was just like a romantic walk on the beach together. As the temperature rose (eventually reaching 97 degrees on the thermometer Doug had placed in the shade of a pine tree, although very few portions of the course were in the shade), it felt even more like a day at the beach! I told Jay to go ahead and I slowed down my pace and was even more conscientious about reapplying sunscreen frequently. As I approached the aid at the end of each loop I would do a mental inventory of what I needed to do and/or get, such as “water, Gatorade, salt caplet, sunscreen, bugspray, Clif Blocks” or “bathroom, Mountain Dew, Chex Mix, sunscreen, chapstick, bugspray.” I ran by myself for awhile and was feeling comfortable and never felt too hot. At one point in the early afternoon I started a lap feeling great but quickly realized that my stomach was not digesting anything. I knew that I needed to slow way down to let some blood divert from my running muscles to my digestive system. I started a slow walk and was soon joined in that pace by Brad and Cheryl, who were also slowing down at this point. Brad and his family are long-time friends of ours so we enjoyed talking about family and upcoming runs. Cheryl and I knew each other but not very well, so we enjoyed learning that both of us used to be in the army and grew up as “army brats.” We also discussed what to do about our stomach issues and the frequency and color of our pee to determine if we were dehydrated. At the end of the loop my stomach was still not processing anything so I knew I had to sit down for awhile and rest completely. Our friend Rick was sitting under his canopy a few feet away and offered me some ginger chews, ginger ale, and ginger candy to help settle my stomach. He moved over to an extra lawn chair under our canopy with his offerings and we had a nice conversation while we recuperated for nearly an hour. I have known Rick for awhile but just learned that he had had Hodgkins disease several years ago and had his spleen removed. He showed me his surgical scars (“3 bellybuttons”) and also told me of his remedies for butt chafing. I have been fortunate enough not to sweat enough to have this issue, but was happy to learn of this information to pass on to other running friends. I was later amused to think that among ultrarunners it is quite normal to have a conversation with a member of the opposite sex about the color of your pee and butt chafing remedies! After my extended break I felt much better and went out for the next loop. As I went through the soft sandy section I thought about how the soft sand in my shoes was forming into a custom insole in the bottom of my shoe. It almost felt pleasant for awhile, but I knew that I would need to change socks and shoes. I was wearing gaiters to minimize debris in my shoes, but the fine sand still found its way in. At the end of the next lap I emptied the sand from my shoes and socks and I could have filled a small sandbox! I put on clean shoes and socks but knew that would only last a short time. Not much later my small toe started to hurt and then it felt like it exploded. The pain went away soon after that but when I later changed shoes and socks again I saw that I had a blister that pretty much covered the entire toe. It didn’t hurt though so I just put on some thicker, softer socks and kept going. The evening light made the now-familiar scenery beautiful in a different way. Summer evenings are my favorite time to run! The field of runners was spread out now and I was running alone but enjoying it. I was not sure how many runners were left in the race—I knew of a few who had dropped out and I saw several runners laying on benches in the building when I went in for a bathroom break. There was plenty of time for runners to take a break during the heat of the day and then to go back out refreshed since the overall race cutoff time allowed 36 hours. As night approached I put on my headlamp and noticed some city lights off in the distance. I could not see any buildings or towns during the day so it was a surprise. The moon was just a small sliver but the stars were clear and bright when I looked up. I focused more on following the course in the dark—it was marked and somewhat familiar by now, but it would be easy to miss a turn in the dark if I was not paying attention. By this point the laps seemed longer and longer. I was doing more walking than running since my feet hurt, my shins hurt, it was extremely dark, and I was just plain worn out. As usual, I promised myself I would never have to run another 100 miler after I finished this one. Then I told myself I would never have to run again at all once I finished this one. Even at the time I knew I was lying to myself. I do love many things about running at night. The sounds are different; it’s quieter but the sounds you hear are more intense. I was not afraid of the wildlife (even though every stick looks like a snake and every rustle in the bushes I imagine is a snake), but late during the night I heard people loudly talking and approaching. I was afraid it was wild partiers out in the woods and that they might be up to no good. They quickly caught up to me and it turned out to be our friend Tom and his pacer Joe. Tom lives nearby and had started the race, ran about 40 miles, and went home for 7 hours for a shower and nap and came back out to run through the night. Tom and Joe and I ran together for awhile and talked. Tom said that the lights I saw in the distance were the Rockingham Speedway and that there was an event going on there that night. Tom and Joe pulled ahead after a few minutes and it was quiet once again. I heard and later saw a few frogs and we had a nice conversation too. As the night wore on I was wearing out but just to the point of slowing down and getting a bit sleepy. I took a caffeine tablet along with my food and fluids at the end of a couple of laps, but never felt a real jolt. I did keep moving and my spirits were fine—the nighttime is just long when you’re awake the whole time. I was surprised at one point to see a runner with a headlamp walking toward me. I asked him if I was going the wrong way and he said he wasn’t sure. We went back down the way where he had come from, until we ran into a huge and well-established spider web and realized that could not have been the established trail. We were talking as we turned back around and I discovered that I was now running
...
Date: Thu, 2 Jul 2009 06:07:34 -0700
From: anitadarl...@yahoo.com
Subject: Hot Time 100
To: mangumtc@googlegroups.com
I haven't written a race report in awhile, but I wrote this one for our local running club newsletter. The newsletter version will probably be shorter and edited but you get the "rough draft." :-)
Many thanks to Doug and our Mangum Track Club buddies and the wonderful volunteers and other runners for supporting us through this unique adventure!
Race information, results, and a few pictures here:
Hot Time 100 (by Anita Finkle)
“I understand that the race director may make up rules as necessary and the new rules could be retroactive….. I come to this event expecting nothing from anyone except myself…... I look forward with enthusiasm to this chance to test myself yet again, and to struggle and hurt for 100 miles to prove that I am as tough as I think I am.” These are a few excerpts from the waiver on the entry form of the Hot Time 100 (yes, 100 miles) which took place the weekend of June 27-28 in Hoffman, NC.
Of course Jay and I could not resist signing up, especially since our friend Doug Dawkins was the Race Director and it was a bargain at only 25 cents per mile. The course consisted of a double loop, somewhat in the shape of a figure eight. Each “half loop” was approximately 3.6 miles and each full lap was approximately 7.2 miles. To complete the full 100+ mile distance would require 14 full laps. One advantage of this setup was that we ran past our vehicle and any aid we chose to bring every half loop. There was also a building with restrooms available and coolers full of cold water and Gatorade provided by the race director. Jay and I set up a canopy and table with lawn chairs, changes of clothes, shoes, and socks, sunscreen, bugspray, snacks, salt caplets, and coolers. We wore our Camelbaks for additional water.
Approximately 20 runners started at 6am Saturday. Many of us knew each other and the early miles were spent learning the course layout, chatting with our running buddies, and enjoying some relatively easy miles before the temperature rose. The course was on a game preserve and consisted of dirt roads and trails in the appropriately named “sandhills” area of North Carolina. I was pleasantly surprised by the beauty and variety of the vegetation. The course was marked with yellow streamers and with signs with arrows at major turns. The Race Director had put up some signs right along the edge of the course identifying “poison oak.” All of the plants started to look like poison oak to me and I was hoping I could time my bathroom breaks for the “real” bathrooms at the end of each loop rather than take my chances of squatting in the wrong place. There were also numerous ant hills and aggressive biting flies. I reapplied bugspray and sunscreen almost every loop. The scenery and camaraderie in these early miles were pleasant and I thought about how lucky I am to have the fitness and health to be able to run events like this and to have such great friends to share the experience with. There were probably more volunteers than runners cheering us on, refilling the coolers of water and Gatorade, and counting our laps. My husband Jay and I ran a few of the early miles together and we enjoyed each other’s company as always. Some sections of the course consisted of deep, soft sand and I told Jay it was just like a romantic walk on the beach together. As the temperature rose (eventually reaching 97 degrees on the thermometer Doug had placed in the shade of a pine tree, although very few portions of the course were in the shade), it felt even more like a day at the beach! I told Jay to go ahead and I slowed down my pace and was even more conscientious about reapplying sunscreen frequently. As I approached the aid at the end of each loop I would do a mental inventory of what I needed to do and/or get, such as “water, Gatorade, salt caplet, sunscreen, bugspray, Clif Blocks” or “bathroom, Mountain Dew, Chex Mix, sunscreen, chapstick, bugspray.” I ran by myself for awhile and was feeling comfortable and never felt too hot. At one point in the early afternoon I started a lap feeling great but quickly realized that my stomach was not digesting anything. I knew that I needed to slow way down to let some blood divert from my running muscles to my digestive system. I started a slow walk and was soon joined in that pace by Brad and Cheryl, who were also slowing down at this point. Brad and his family are long-time friends of ours so we enjoyed talking about family and upcoming runs. Cheryl and I knew each other but not very well, so we enjoyed learning that both of us used to be in the army and grew up as “army brats.” We also discussed what to do about our stomach issues and the frequency and color of our pee to determine if we were dehydrated. At the end of the loop my stomach was still not processing anything so I knew I had to sit down for awhile and rest completely. Our friend Rick was sitting under his canopy a few feet away and offered me some ginger chews, ginger ale, and ginger candy to help settle my stomach. He moved over to an extra lawn chair under our canopy with his offerings and we had a nice conversation while we recuperated for nearly an hour. I have known Rick for awhile but just learned that he had had Hodgkins disease several years ago and had his spleen removed. He showed me his surgical scars (“3 bellybuttons”) and also told me of his remedies for butt chafing. I have been fortunate enough not to sweat enough to have this issue, but was happy to learn of this information to pass on to other running friends. I was later amused to think that among ultrarunners it is quite normal to have a conversation with a member of the opposite sex about the color of your pee and butt chafing remedies!
After my extended break I felt much better and went out for the next loop. As I went through the soft sandy section I thought about how the soft sand in my shoes was forming into a custom insole in the bottom of my shoe. It almost felt pleasant for awhile, but I knew that I would need to change socks and shoes. I was wearing gaiters to minimize debris in my shoes, but the fine sand still found its way in. At the end of the next lap I emptied the sand from my shoes and socks and I could have filled a small sandbox! I put on clean shoes and socks but knew that would only last a short time. Not much later my small toe started to hurt and then it felt like it exploded. The pain went away soon after that but when I later changed shoes and socks again I saw that I had a blister that pretty much covered the entire toe. It didn’t hurt though so I just put on some thicker, softer socks and kept going.
The evening light made the now-familiar scenery beautiful in a different way. Summer evenings are my favorite time to run! The field of runners was spread out now and I was running alone but enjoying it. I was not sure how many runners were left in the race—I knew of a few who had dropped out and I saw several runners laying on benches in the building when I went in for a bathroom break. There was plenty of time for runners to take a break during the heat of the day and then to go back out refreshed since the overall race cutoff time allowed 36 hours.
As night approached I put on my headlamp and noticed some city lights off in the distance. I could not see any buildings or towns during the day so it was a surprise. The moon was just a small sliver but the stars were clear and bright when I looked up. I focused more on following the course in the dark—it was marked and somewhat familiar by now, but it would be easy to miss a turn in the dark if I was not paying attention. By this point the laps seemed longer and longer. I was doing more walking than running since my feet hurt, my shins hurt, it was extremely dark, and I was just plain worn out. As usual, I promised myself I would never have to run another 100 miler after I finished this one. Then I told myself I would never have to run again at all once I finished this one. Even at the time I knew I was lying to myself.
I do love many things about running at night. The sounds are different; it’s quieter but the sounds you hear are more intense. I was not afraid of the wildlife (even though every stick looks like a snake and every rustle in the bushes I imagine is a snake), but late during the night I heard people loudly talking and approaching. I was afraid it was wild partiers out in the woods and that they might be up to no good. They quickly caught up to me and it turned out to be our friend Tom and his pacer Joe. Tom lives nearby and had started the race, ran about 40 miles, and went home for 7 hours for a shower and nap and came back out to run through the night. Tom and Joe and I ran together for awhile and talked. Tom said that the lights I saw in the distance were the Rockingham Speedway and that there was an event going on there that night. Tom and Joe pulled ahead after a few minutes and it was quiet once again. I heard and later saw a few frogs and we had a nice conversation too.
As the night wore on I was wearing out but just to the point of slowing down and getting a bit sleepy. I took a caffeine tablet along with my food and fluids at the end of a couple of laps, but never felt a real jolt. I did keep moving and my spirits were fine—the nighttime is just long when you’re awake the whole time. I was surprised at one point to see a runner with a headlamp walking toward me. I asked him if I was
...
I haven't written a race report in awhile, but I wrote this one for our
local running club newsletter. The newsletter version will probably be
shorter and edited but you get the "rough draft." :-)
Many thanks to Doug and our Mangum Track Club buddies and the wonderful volunteers and other runners for supporting us through this unique adventure!
Race information, results, and a few pictures here:
Hot Time 100 (by Anita Finkle) “I understand that the race director may make up rules as necessary and the new rules could be retroactive….. I come to this event expecting nothing from anyone except myself…... I look forward with enthusiasm to this chance to test myself yet again, and to struggle and hurt for 100 miles to prove that I am as tough as I think I am.” These are a few excerpts from the
waiver on the entry form of the Hot Time 100 (yes, 100 miles) which took place the weekend of June 27-28 in Hoffman, NC.
Of course Jay and I could not resist signing up, especially since our friend Doug Dawkins was the Race Director and it was a bargain at only 25 cents per mile. The course consisted of a double loop, somewhat in the shape of a figure eight. Each “half loop” was approximately 3.6 miles and each full lap was approximately 7.2 miles. To complete the full 100+ mile distance would require 14 full laps. One advantage of this setup was that we ran past our vehicle and any aid we chose to bring every half loop. There was also a building with restrooms available and coolers full of cold water and Gatorade provided by the race director. Jay and I set up a canopy and table with lawn chairs, changes of clothes, shoes, and socks, sunscreen, bugspray, snacks, salt caplets, and coolers. We wore our Camelbaks for
additional water. Approximately 20 runners started at 6am Saturday. Many of us knew each
other and the early miles were spent learning the course layout, chatting with our running buddies, and enjoying some relatively easy miles before the
temperature rose. The course was on a game preserve and consisted of dirt roads and trails in the appropriately named “sandhills” area of North Carolina. I was pleasantly surprised by the beauty and variety of the vegetation. The course was marked with yellow streamers and with signs with arrows at major turns. The Race Director had put up some signs right along the edge of the course identifying “poison oak.” All of the plants started to look like poison oak to me and I was hoping I could time my bathroom breaks for the “real” bathrooms at the end of each loop rather than take my chances of squatting in the wrong place. There were also numerous ant hills and aggressive biting flies. I reapplied bugspray and sunscreen almost every loop. The scenery and camaraderie in these early miles were pleasant and I thought about how lucky I am to have the fitness and health to be able to run events like this and to have such great friends to share the experience with. There were probably more volunteers than runners cheering us on, refilling the coolers of water and Gatorade, and counting our laps. My
husband Jay and I ran a few of the early miles together and we enjoyed each
other’s company as always. Some sections of the course consisted of deep, soft sand and I told Jay it was just like a romantic walk on the beach together. As the temperature rose (eventually reaching 97 degrees on the thermometer Doug had placed in the shade of a pine tree, although very few portions of the course were in the shade), it felt even more like a day at the beach! I told Jay to go ahead and I slowed down my pace and was even more conscientious about reapplying sunscreen frequently. As I approached the aid at
the end of each loop I would do a mental inventory of what I needed to do
and/or get, such as “water, Gatorade, salt caplet, sunscreen, bugspray, Clif
Blocks” or “bathroom, Mountain Dew, Chex Mix, sunscreen, chapstick,
bugspray.” I ran by myself for awhile and was feeling comfortable and never felt too hot. At one point in the early afternoon I started a lap feeling great but quickly realized that my stomach was not digesting anything. I knew that I needed to slow way down to let some blood divert from my running muscles to my digestive system. I started a slow walk and was soon joined in that pace by Brad and Cheryl, who were also slowing down at this point. Brad and his family are long-time friends of ours so we enjoyed talking
about family and upcoming runs. Cheryl and I knew each other but not very well, so we enjoyed learning that both of us used to be in the army and grew up as “army brats.” We also discussed what to do about our stomach issues and the frequency and color of our pee to determine if we were dehydrated. At the end of the loop my stomach was still not processing anything so I knew I had to sit down for awhile and rest completely. Our friend Rick was sitting under his canopy a few feet away and offered me some ginger chews, ginger ale, and ginger candy to help settle my stomach. He moved over
to an extra lawn chair under our canopy with his offerings and we had a nice
conversation while we recuperated for nearly an hour. I have known Rick for awhile but just learned that he had had Hodgkins disease several years ago and had his spleen removed. He showed me his surgical scars (“3 bellybuttons”) and also told me of his remedies for butt chafing. I have been fortunate enough not to sweat enough to have this issue, but was happy to learn of this information to pass on to other running friends. I was later amused to think that among ultrarunners it is quite normal to have a conversation with a member of the opposite sex about the color of your pee and butt chafing remedies! After my extended break I felt much better and went out for the next
loop. As I went through the soft sandy section I thought about how the soft sand in my shoes was forming into a custom insole in the bottom of my shoe.
It almost felt pleasant for awhile, but I knew that I would need to change socks and shoes. I was wearing gaiters to minimize debris in my shoes, but the fine sand still found its way in. At the end of the next lap I
emptied the sand from my shoes and socks and I could have filled a small
sandbox! I put on clean shoes and socks but knew that would only last a short time. Not much later my small toe started to hurt and then it felt like it exploded. The pain went away soon after that but when I later changed shoes and socks again I saw that I had a blister that pretty much covered the entire toe. It didn’t hurt though so I just put on some thicker, softer socks and kept going. The evening light made the now-familiar scenery beautiful in a different
way. Summer evenings are my favorite time to run! The field of runners was spread out now and I was running alone but enjoying it. I was not sure how many runners were left in the race—I knew of a few who had dropped out and I saw several runners laying on benches in the building when I went in for a bathroom break. There was plenty of time for runners to take a break during the heat of the day and then to go back out refreshed since the overall race cutoff time allowed 36 hours.
As night approached I put on my headlamp and noticed some city lights off in the distance. I could not see any buildings or towns during the day so it was a surprise. The moon was just a small sliver but the stars were clear and bright when I looked up. I focused more on following the course in the dark—it was marked and somewhat familiar by now, but it would be easy to miss a turn in the dark if I was not paying attention. By this point the laps seemed longer and longer. I was doing more walking than running since my feet hurt, my shins hurt, it was extremely dark, and I was just plain worn out. As usual, I promised myself I would never have to run another 100 miler after I finished this one. Then I told myself I would never have to run again at all once I finished this one. Even at the time I knew I was lying to myself. I do love many things about running at night. The sounds are different;
it’s quieter but the sounds you hear are more intense. I was not afraid of the wildlife (even though every stick looks like a snake and every rustle in the bushes I imagine is a snake), but late during the night I heard people loudly talking and approaching. I was afraid it was wild partiers out in the woods and that they might be up to no good. They quickly caught up to me and it turned out to be our friend Tom and his pacer Joe. Tom lives nearby and had started the race, ran about 40 miles, and went home for 7 hours for a shower and nap and came back out to run through the night. Tom and Joe and I ran together for awhile and talked. Tom said that the lights I saw in the distance were the Rockingham Speedway and that there was an event going on there that night. Tom and Joe pulled ahead after a few minutes and it was quiet once again. I heard and later saw a few frogs and we had a nice conversation too. As the night wore on I was wearing out but just to the point of slowing down and getting a bit sleepy. I took a caffeine tablet along with my food and fluids at the end of a couple of laps, but never felt a real
...
What a great race summary! In some perverted way, I love to read
about the pain of others! But more importantly, I love to read of the
effort, the attempt, the trial. Win or lose . . . finish or DNF . . .
PR or not . . . Runners are special folks and this was a wonderful
summary. Thank you for sharing it! And way to go!!!!!!
Amazing. Simply amazing. The running and the telling of it. This wonderful piece of writing will serve as an inspiration for others, 'cos I'm sure everyone (like I am doing) will forward it to their running friends!
Congratulations to you and Jay and to all who finished and to all who started. I admire each and every one of you.
ron _____
From: MangumTC@googlegroups.com [mailto:MangumTC@googlegroups.com] On Behalf Of Anita Finkle Sent: Thursday, July 02, 2009 9:08 AM To: MTC Subject: Hot Time 100
I haven't written a race report in awhile, but I wrote this one for our local running club newsletter. The newsletter version will probably be shorter and edited but you get the "rough draft." :-)
|
