The Banshee vs. the Baker

I ran my first 50 mile ultra yesterday and it was amazing! The Baker website doesn't do this race justice at all. It is a run in three sections over the course of three years. Each 50 mile section holds its own charms and obstacles (and medals)! This year I faced the North section which is almost entirely trail. There is about 6 miles of road and 8 miles of rails-to-trails. I couldn't wait to earn the first piece of the three piece medal! I think it is just the neatest idea ever!



I am thanking my lucky stars that my running buddies and I did some training runs on the trail. You may remember my previous post about the training run where we got lost three or four different times, running out of water along the way. Because of those practice runs and tough lessons I was much more cautious about following the blazes and I never strayed off course, even correcting a few runners before they got too far away. Nothing like good trail karma!





I spent the night before with Danielle, her husband, Eric, and another girlfriend, Kathie. The ladies were taking part in the relay and my friend's husband and I were competing in the full ultra. We topped off our race day reserves with brats, baked beans, tortilla chips with salsa, and marshmellows toasted in the fire (chased down with cosmos, of course). It was a great way to relax and keep the pre-race jitters at bay!





The next morning we took a bus from the Brookville YMCA (finish line) to the starting line in Cook's Forest just in time for the 6:30AM start. It was a bumpy, uncomfortable ride but we made the best of it!



At the starting line I was pleasantly surprised to see my Team reGen teammate, Tom, as well as another old running buddy of mine, also named Tom! I was introduced to many other running friends and the crisp morning air had everyone in fine spirits.



We ran about a quarter mile up the road and made a right turn into the woods. Dannielle was running the first and last legs of the relay so I was glad to have her company for the first 12 miles! We set out at a good clip and I tried to just hang on while I got warmed up. The first 10 miles or so are fairly good running with only a few rocks and roots so I may have gone a little too fast on these miles while enjoying my trail time with my BFF. My splits for the first twelve miles were 14:01 (bottleneck at the trailhead), 11:58, 11:31, 12:11, 14:22, 14:45, 14:18, 13:00, 14:23, 11:37, 12:34, and 14:29. The 14 minute miles were uphill! ;)

At the second aid station (mile 11.8) I bid fairwell to Dannielle and struck out on my own. It was the first really steep climb of the course. It's been groomed to be gigantic dirt stairs and the scenery is really gorgeous. A cyclonic storm knocked down a lot of the huge trees so there's giant skeleton trunks everywhere amid the new growth. It was only 3 miles to the next aid station at the fire tower and I slowed down to enjoy it (17:49, 17:41, 16:08). Coming out of the fire tower there is a steep downhill with lots of rocks and roots as well as more than enough switchbacks to last me a month! It slowed me down quite a bit as I tried not to blow my quads this early in the game. From there it was another 3 mile jaunt to the next aid station and I was feeling pretty good (16:08, 17:49, 20:48). That last split tells me I lingered a bit too long at the aid station!



It was 4.4 miles and a REALLY steep climb to the next aid station where I also had my drop bag stashed. I started out with a SPIbelt and an Ultimate Direction handheld and thought I would pick up my Nathan hydration vest at this aid station. I felt so good I decided to stick with the handheld and all I picked up was my iPod (15:43, 17:00, 17:06, 19:00) as I congratulated myself on being almost to the halfway point only 3 miles away. It gave me a much needed mental boost and my next splits showed it (11:45, 14:07, 14:18).

Heading out of the halfway aid station I was enjoying myself and thinking that at the 30 mark I would be 60% done! I could barely believe it! It was a steep downhill for the most part again and I walked more than I should have to the next aid station (18:39, 19:15, 13:54). It was at this aid station that I hit the 30 mile mark and really started to feel the strain I was placing on my body. Right at the 50k mark was another short but very steep climb and I think I overtaxed myself passing a couple people who paused halfway up. My splits to the 35 mile aid station were 14:07, 17:29, 15:49, 21:10, 20:04, 21:38, and 16:48. Those 20 minute miles were nothing but walking and they really gave me a mental kick in the gut. I told myself I just needed to get to the next aid station at 41 miles and pull myself together. I tried to stick the guys in front of my as best I could but I eventually lost them (20:46, 18:39, 18:48, 18:39, 18:09, and 21:05).

At the 41 mile aid station I picked up some new company, a man named Donnie who was doing his second year of the Baker. He was also having a rough time and we decided to stick it out together. We started out by trying to run a half mile at a time before walking. It really helped us both as we approached the 44 mile aid station (15:32, 15:52, 18:19). We spent a couple minutes using the Port-a-potty (YAY!) and getting rehydrated for the next push to the 47 mile aid station. My Garmin died during this section so my last split for mile 45 was 20:32. After that we relied on Donnie's Garmin and resorted to running a quarter mile at a time. We used the facilities at the last aid station and I ate a Reese's peanutbutter cup. I think that was just the magic I needed!

I started to feel good. We could walk 20 minute miles and still finish under the cutoff. My hopes and my spirits rose and we started to pick people off with our running spurts. We started to run more and walk less and every step was like a weight off my shoulders. A mile from the finish we were walking up a short hill and a race volunteer started yelling at us to 'step it up' and 'you're not going to make it'! Donnie and I freaked out. We hauled ass to the bottom of the short uphill that leads to the finish line. We recognized the courthouse that is less than a block away from the YMCA where we would finish. I asked Donnie what his watch said and he told me we had almost 40 minutes to make it about a quarter mile. I laughed about it but that volunteer scaring us like that left a bitter taste in my mouth. It was the only bad experience of my entire race.



We walked up the hill, made a right turn down an alley, then a left up a hill, and a quick right to the finish line! I had made it! The race director, Steve, scanned my tag for the final time and handed me a medal! Dannielle snuck up from behind me and about tackled me! It was better than getting any other award so far. Official time was 13:31:14 and 60/66 finishers. There were 7 DNF's.



Dannielle and Eric treated me like royalty. They had been done for hours but hung around just to see me finish. They put together food and brought me soda and water (and reGen!). Eric even took my drop bags to my car and brought me back my finish line bag so I could shower and change at the Y's facilities. I've never been so grateful to my friend's in my life. They really made this race experience amazing!




To top it off I called my husband to let him know that I was alive and would be headed home shortly. It turned out that he'd decided to race a 5k that morning and had taken first place in his age group and 30th overall! He got a picture with one of our congressmen and a really nice trophy. I was so proud of him! What a great team we make!



I was very pleased to learn that my fellow reGen runner, Tom, had finished 30th overall with a time of 11:48. Dannielle's husband, Eric, finished around 11:30 and my good friend, Tom, finished 10th overall with a time of 10:24! Dannielle and Kathie's relay team came in 4th out of 7 with a time of 10:20! I'm surrounded by awesomesauce!