The Big One Elizabeth

Eleanor Roosevelt said to, "Do something every day that scares you". 

In less than 24 hours, I will be toeing the line of the Tahoe Rim Trail 100 mile trail race. I would like to say I am totally prepared, because usually I am good at planning and setting goals and executing those goals. However, this time, that has not been the case. I can make all kinds of excuses, but the bottom line really is the fact that I re-prioritized my free time and running took second seat to several other things in my life. 

I am scared, Eleanor. 

Flume Trail in Winter

Marlette Lake in Winter

When I signed up for this race last December, I was in my running prime. I had just placed in both a 50 mile race and a 50k race. I was ramping up my training and I was running up the hills with gusto! I had thoughts in my mind that I may try to place in a very important 100k in March and that maybe I would even get a sub 28 hour at TRT. 

Then I got injured, ramped up my hours at work, bought a house and started drinking heavily. Okay, that last part is a joke, but seriously, I started eating worse, exercising less and in no time at all, it was July and I had not even completed half of my necessary training.

What will this mean for me tomorrow? 

To start off, I am going into this with the thought in my mind that it is just a really long two day hike. The cutoff time to finish this race is 35 hours. Even the very fast guys do it in no less than 18. To finish in 35 hours, I would need to keep my pace just under 3 miles an hour. So, I could walk a lot of it and still finish in time. 

I may be walking a lot of it. 

I plan to start off at a run and see how far I get. There are a few gradual downhills which I know I can jog no matter what (even during the 2nd 50 miles). There are a couple steep uphills (think 1.5 miles with 1,200 feet of climbing) where I will barely make 1 - 2 miles per hour. 

What worries me the most? 

Of course I am competitive and I would like to do well, but I have mostly thrown that out the window. I just want to finish. However, the part which will be the most difficult will be the night portion. During the night, there is a loop called the Red House Loop, which is a 6 mile loop with about a 2 mile steep downhill (loss of about 1,000 feet) and then a 4 mile gradual to steep uphill. This loop is not fun in the daytime and it will be even less fun at night. 

The race motto is, "A Glimpse of Heaven; a Taste of Hell". The Red House Loop is the taste of Hell. 

On the other hand, there are many Glimpses of Heaven. So I will enjoy those and not think too much about the tastes of Hell. 

If you want to follow me, I will be running from Saturday at 5 am PST to Sunday around Noon (*cutoff is at 4 pm). The live tracker is HERE. Also, my brother will be pacing me and should be tweeting when possible (the service in the mountains is not great). You can find his twitter feed HERE Otherwise, just send good juju my way this weekend because I will need it! 

What are you up to this weekend? 

Your Pace or Mine?

This weekend I attended my first 100 mile race. It was so inspiring to be amongst such greatness. However, I did not run the entire 100 miles. I was a pacer.

A pacer, if you are in a marathon, can be the difference between your making your goal time or not. They keep you going at a steady pace, not too fast, not too slow, in order to finish at your desired time. I suggest you use one if it's your first time, or even if you have a time goal that you are not certain you will make.

Got my race bib on

However, in an ultra, pacers can be just that, someone who helps you keep pace, but they can also be much more. In the Tahoe Rim Trail 100 mile race (TRT100), you are allowed to have someone run with you for the last 50 miles. Like I said, it's to help you keep pace, as there are strict cutoffs at each aid station, but it's also to keep the runner safe, make sure they get enough to eat and drink, monitor whether or not they are getting woozy or tired or loopy (and all of these do happen) and to be there as company for someone who has probably been out on the trails for around 24 hours (or more). You don't want them to get stuck in their own thoughts too much!

The guy I paced was a friend of a friend; we had never met before. By the time I met him, he had already been running for 80 miles and about 26 hours. I don't know about you, but that would probably not be the best time to meet ME for the first time! I would be Grumpy McGrumpster. And nevermind trying to carry on a conversation with me!

Which is what I expected of him. Here's how I saw it going. He would be super tired, grumpy, negative and silent. I would have to keep pushing him to run faster, and would try to be cheerful without being annoying, all while talking non-stop in order to keep him awake, and not expecting him to say anything back. I thought I may have to force him to eat and drink while listening to him complain of blisters and sore feet and tired legs and blurred vision and hallucinations. Okay that last thing was a joke.

But seriously, I thought I would have to be a one woman cheerleader, and I was never a very good one of those. However, things were not like I thought. Here is how it went.

We met at 7 a.m at Diamond Peak, which was the 80 mile aid station. Fuel there included pancakes, coffee and soup. I had sat there for about 2 and a half hours waiting for my runner and had seen many people pass through who were absolutely exhausted. Others, on the other hand, were chipper, laughing and seemed like they had only run a few miles rather than a few dozen. My runner was one of the latter. After getting him some food and drinks, a change of clothes and a bit of sunscreen, we started up the hill. We left the first aid station 15 minutes before the cut off (7:30 a.m.).

Diamond Peak hill with Lake Tahoe in the background.

As always, the first couple of miles were all uphill. My runner was in good spirits; he was talking and seemed to actually be enjoying himself. We stopped to take in the view a couple of times, which was gorgeous. After we got to the top of the hill, we met up with the Tahoe Rim Trail and headed south. The trail was great. It was fairly level and it went along the edge of the hill with a great view of Lake Tahoe and Marlette Lake. At Tunnel Creek, the first big aid station, we fueled up with quesadillas and coffee (for me, sprite for my runner) and got back on the road. We left about 40 minutes before the cut off.

Marlette Lake view

Eventually we got to the very top, which was at about 9,000 feet. Getting up there was a little difficult, as we were starting to get near the tree line and the sun was beating down pretty hard. At this point it was about 12 o'clock and the temperature was in the 90s. When we got to the top of Snow Peak, the aid station there was manned by boy scouts who filled up our bottles with ice and gave us a nice cold sponge on the head before we started down the hill for our last 7 miles. At this point we were about an hour ahead of the cutoff.

High Sierra wildflowers

For the final seven miles, we jogged along, not talking too much. We even passed a few other pairs of runners, although we had been leap frogging with a couple of pairs all day. We arrived at Spooner Lake, where the last mile or so goes around the side of the lake and man was it good to see the lake. We could even hear the cheers coming across the lake from the finish line. It was just the boost we needed. We ran the last quarter of a mile and crossed the finish line together.

We made it across the finish line in 33 hours and 17 minutes, a whole hour and 43 minutes ahead of the cutoff, which means my runner got his coveted buckle! I was so proud of him; he didn't complain or lag at all! He really was quite an inspiration! I don't know how he did it! I was really happy to be a part of his successful race.

Are there specific times when you like to have company to boost your spirits? Have you ever been a pacer for a race? Have you ever used a pacer/pace group?