Race starts & I look around & wonder why I'm in FIRST place! I didn't want to be in first place. ...now admittedly, there were only 28 people running. I was in the lead for the first 18 miles before the wheels fell off. Let me make this clear- I was leading the race! I still don't understand how that's possible. As a wise coach once said, "They don't give awards for winning the first half of a race." :) I do NOT think I went out too fast. I held back the first lap & ran comfortably the 2nd.
2nd place was 40 meters behind me at the 2 mile mark & I felt a lot of pressure, so I decided to surge a tiny bit for the next 800m. That gave me a more cushion so I could relax. At the end of each of six 5+ mile loops, you have a 4:00 section of out & back where you can see where people are. At the end of the first loop, he was about 2:00 back. I went to the outhouse (yes, outhouse) in the 2nd loop, but he was still 2:00 back, which means without the stop, I was still gaining ground. I decided, "If I'm going to win this thing, I need to get some separation and by the next loop, I don't want to be able to see him." My thought was "Out of sight, out of mind." If he knew I was making up ground, he'd forget about me. At least that's what I thought. ...I mean, I'm never close to this situation, so... So I picked it up from miles 10-13. My already queasy stomach had enough & at 14 miles, I puked. At the end of the 3rd loop, I was still 2:30 or so ahead. I took a little long between laps to get more drink & special needs stuff. Puked twice on the 4th loop and he caught me at 18. Another guy caught me at 19. Two others caught me at 19.5. Two others caught me in the 5th loop. I was forced to walk a few times the 4th & 5th loops, but ran the whole 6th loop- just slowly. I passed one of the guys less than a mile from the end, so I ended up in 6th. 4:49:40.
Laps 2-6 included about 2:00 at my car/aid station, but I was going pretty well until the 4th loop.
Lap 1- 42:11, Lap 2- 42:40, Lap 3- 41:59, Lap 4- 49:41, Lap 5 - 57:16, Lap 6- 55:45
I decided a while back my puking trouble has always been about nerves. I used to have stomach problems in every road marathon I ran b/c I put so much pressure on myself to PR. With trail running, I relax more & enjoy it, so no stomach problems. I think because I felt the pressure of not getting passed, I had the stomach problems. Dumb, I know. I've never led a race since 10th grade! Uncharted territory. I freaked out a little, I guess. Some of the problem, I'm sure was picking up the pace, but I wasn't exactly flying- 7:30 pace for those 3 miles maybe.
The course was OK. Very flat, longleaf pine forest, sand. The sand was loose & soft. Not ideal, but it was good enough. Not very technical, but there were sections with roots & little stumps. The sand made it tougher than it should've been though. Weather was perfect! 60, no sun & breezy. Course well marked & race director & volunteers nice & helpful. Sweatshirt. Finisher's award is a framed picture of you, which I like better than a medal. Something different. Saw no gators, but there was a baby alligator skeleton on the course. A 12 foot gator recently died there.
Eating didn't happen. With that & the pukes, I'm surprised there was no bonking, but I was OK. Got very hungry the 5th lap and ate some trail mix, which hit the spot. I also remember
ed why I don't like Perpeteum. My sciatic nerve problem was pretty bad. I'm sure I would've slowed due to it in the last 2 laps. My toe problem is getting worse & worse. Since I was little, one of them has curled under, but it's getting worse. When I run, the end of the toenail faces all the way down- perpendicular to the ground, causing some nasty problems. I'm thankful when it falls off 1-2 times a year, because it's so mangled you can't really cut it well. I think I need to have something done to it. Surgery to straighten it has always been in the back of my mind & I always say, "After the next race." I'm thinking it may be better to just get the nail permanently removed. I dunno. Yeah, it's gross.
