Friday, June 21, 2019

Lighthouse 100 Miler


May 31

My son-in-law, Ben, and I are flying up to northern Michigan so that I can run a 100-mile race.  He will be crewing for me, stopping at every aid station to ensure I have what I need.  The weather is near perfect for flying except we have a little bit of a headwind.  The flight takes 4 hours and 40 minutes, but we manage it non-stop from Huntsville.  When we land in Gaylord, Michigan, our rental car is driven right out to our plane.  I reserved a standard mid-size with Hertz, but we got lucky and will be driving a red Cadillac sedan for the weekend!  We eat lunch in Gaylord at Spicy Bob’s Italian Express.  I have an Italian grinder, and Ben has a calzone.  We are well stuffed as we go over to Walmart to buy a few groceries and then drive over to Traverse City.  We check into our Comfort Inn accommodations and then head to the pre-race briefing at a nearby park.  At the briefing, I meet up with Eric and Noni Clifton, who I haven’t seen since 2000 at the JFK 50.  Eric is a little older now, but he used to win all of these ultra-races.

June 1

The starting line lighthouse
On race morning, we drive the 25 minutes north on the peninsula to the start.  The sun is just starting to show its early light as we arrive at the lighthouse parking lot.  It is cool in the high 40s, but the weather is near perfect.  I ate my usual bowl of granola and cream in the hotel room before driving to the start, and I feel as ready to run 100 miles as I ever have.  There is no pressure except for needing another 100 mile finish.  To date, I have finished 10 and dropped out of 9.  This race will be unique for my 100 mile races as it is all on paved surfaces.  No mud or other elements, just plenty of hard pavement.  I start the race with shorts, short-sleeve shirt, and a buff on my head.  To guard against the cool temperatures, I pull on a light long-sleeve shirt for the first few miles.  There are 41 of us that toe the line on this late spring morning.  The race start is exactly on the 45th parallel, which means we are halfway between the equator and the North Pole.

Mile 5.0      57:53 (11:35 avg./mile) Smokey Hollow Road

Sorting out the pack of runners early in the race
Race director Dave says go, and we all begin shuffling forward.  Eric Clifton gets to the front and as we get out on the main road, a deer darts in front of him.  Most of us are all bunched together.  I meet several people who are attempting their first 100, including Ray and Cat.  Karl and Leslie are maintaining a nice, even pace, and for this first section I run near them.  My primary goal is to finish, but my reach goal is to get a PR, (My current PR is 25:51 at Mohican in 2007) and my far stretch goal is to finish under 24 hours.  This is the gold standard for 100-milers.  I like to think of it the same as qualifying for the Boston Marathon.  To run 100 miles in 24-hours, a 14:12/mile average is needed.  So, this first split is good as I have settled into a good pace.  I want to run about 12-minute miles early on, and this is spot on.  I wave at Ben as I roll through this initial aid station.

Mile 9.0      41:14 (10:18 avg./mile) Peninsula Fire Station

After the first aid station, Karl and I start talking about other races.  He has a 100-mile PR of 18 hours or something and has run Vol State at least once.  His goal today is just to get Leslie home for her first 100-mile finish.  They are both planning on running the Vol State later this summer and are using this race as a training run.  What is Vol State you ask?  Why it is a 300-mile, multi-day race around Tennessee created by Lazarus Lake, who also is the race director for the Barkleys.  So, we are chatting away and don’t realize until we get to the aid station that we have left Leslie and Cat a little behind us.  Karl stops at the aid station to wait on them—they are only a minute or two back, and I press forward.  Now, I have a little time in the bank, but I need to ensure I don’t go out too quickly.  I remove the long-sleeve shirt at this point and drink some CR01 (my own mixture that mimics Conquest).

Mile 14.8    1:12:51 (12:34 avg./mile) Bluff Road and Center Road

Darin and Mike
This section is alongside of the East Arm of Grand Traverse Bay.  It is nearly completely flat, but the flat sections seem like they might be uphill.  It is tempting to let yourself walk these flat (maybe slightly uphill) sections, but I know I need to keep running if I am going to achieve my goals.  It isn’t that I don’t feel like running, it is just that I want to conserve as much as possible for late in the race.  About halfway through this section, Mike comes up from behind me.  We run together for a couple miles to the aid station.  Ben is here ready with my chocolate milk and a bagel.  It is still cool, and it has drizzled a little, so the chocolate milk is awesome.

Mile 20.5    1:13:18 (12:52 avg./mile) East Bay Park

I stroll into East Bay Park mostly by myself, although there is another runner who is leapfrogging me as our run/walk rhythms are offset.  This section was almost entirely flat, and my pace seems to be working well.  I am running about 13 minutes and then walking 2 minutes.  One of the aid station workers asks me if I also bike as my thighs are larger than most for runners.  I reply that no I don’t bike, but I do play ice hockey, and used to play football.  I peruse the selection of food at this manned aid station and settle on a healthy handful of potato chips.  The aid station volunteers were willing to make me a peanut butter sandwich, but I didn’t really want to wait for it.

Mile 27.5    1:16:23 (10:55 avg./mile) GJ’s Pizza and Market

We are now in Traverse City having made our way down the peninsula.  I run right by the Comfort Inn that Ben and I stayed in last night, and then I pick my way across traffic and head south before turning left on the TART trail.  This is a nice paved fitness trail that goes through the city for several miles.  I pass a runner with his crew just before getting on the TART trail.  This is a good confidence boost as it confirms I am on the correct route.  The TART is almost perfectly flat, and I settle back into my 13 and 2 rhythm.  I turn off of the TART trail to conquer the hill of Holiday Hills.  It is a good mile plus all uphill before turning around and running back down the hill to this market.  It is really nice to see all of the runners ahead of me and behind me.  I am not sure the mileage on this section is entirely accurate, but I did run down the hill rather quickly.  I drink a fair amount of CR01 when I see Ben at the market.  Interestingly, Ben was sitting here when I was heading up the hill, but he didn’t notice me pass on the opposite side of the street.

Mile 33.3    1:13:42 (12:42 avg./mile) TART trail and Bates Road

After the market, we get back on the TART trail, and I continue my nice comfortable pace.  I catch up with Jenna, who is the race director for the Cry Me a River 100-miler in Peoria, Illinois.  She is only running 50 miles today.  I roll into this aid station at the one-third mark in great shape.  My time is 6:35 so I am well ahead of a 24-hour pace.  I am actually currently slightly ahead of 20-hour pace.  Ben has cooked a nice grilled ham and cheese sandwich for me, and I take my time to eat the whole, piping-hot thing.

Mile 40.0    1:32:33 (13:49 avg./mile) Monro Road
Darin at Mile 40 drinking chocolate milk

After my sandwich, I take a little off of my pace.  I am moving with Mike and Jenna for a good piece of this section.  I feel good so far, but the key is to remain patient.  I could probably rip off 10 miles in an hour and a half at this point, but I would severely pay for it later.  I down some more chocolate milk at this aid station before grazing on more potato chips from the aid station.  It is the same bag of potato chips that was at the 20.5 mile aid station.  My time as I leave is 8 hours and 7 minutes.  So, I am no longer under 20-hour pace, but am in a very good position to finish under 24 hours.

Mile 45.0    51:35 (10:19 avg./mile) Riverwalk Grill

I am still moving with Jenna as the two of us and one other runner enter Elk Rapids.  When the course turns right on US 31, I open up a little gap (not intentionally) on Jenna and the other guy.  Through the heart of the town, the course turns right to the unmanned aid station at the Riverwalk Grill parking lot where Ben is waiting for me.  I drink some chocolate milk and take half of a bagel with me for the road.  I was a little surprised by my pace on this section, but move on quickly as I am approaching the halfway point.  It turns out that I won’t see Jenna again.

Mile 47.8    46:35 (16:38 avg./mile) Caria Highway and Cherry Avenue

I spend the majority of this section running out of Elk Rapids wondering if I am going the right way.  There are no intermediate confidence markings, just signs when a turn is necessary.  I keep looking back for Jenna and the other runner, but they are too far back and I can’t see them.  Finally with about a half mile to go to the aid station, two crew vehicles that I recognize pass me.  Thank goodness I am on the right route!  I roll into the aid station a little slower than before, but I had slowed down when I was uncertain.  I drink some more CR01, and get another handful of potato chips from the aid station.

Mile 53.0    1:21:28 (15:40 avg./mile) Torch Lake Road

Changing shoes at mile 53
The course is well off of Lake Michigan at this point and on the west bank of Torch Lake.  I am leap frogging a couple of guys that looked well dialed in and focused.  On the down hills, I am getting by them, and then they pass me later on the flats or uphill sections.  When I get to the aid station, Ben has the Ramen and hash browns ready.  I decide to change my shoes at this point as I am eating my dinner.  My pace was a little quicker than this 15:40 shows as it includes the time I am sitting here in the aid station.  My elapsed time is 11:07.  Some use a rule of thumb to double the time from mile 55 to predict one’s final time.  By any measure, I am well on pace to finish under 24 hours.

Mile 57.5    1:09:14 (15:23 avg./mile) Sugar Maple Lane

My extended stop at mile 53, let the two guys I was leap frogging get ahead of me far enough that the leap frogging has ceased for now.  The road we are on has some elevation changes.  It is actually nice not to have it be completely flat.  There are actually a couple of climbs.  At the aid station, I quickly duck into the porta-john.  After the pit stop, I graze by the food table and grab some mini candy bars.

Mile 64.0    1:40:02 (15:23 avg./mile) Eastport Market

Darin at mile 64 eating his sandwich
All but about a couple hundred yards of this section are on US 31.  It is nearly all flat with visibility for a mile or more down the road.  I can see the two guys ahead of me the whole way as they stay about a half mile ahead of me.  I have slowed my rhythm down to 10 minutes of running with 5 minutes of walking.  I am figuring that I can maintain this nice 15 minutes per mile pace with this rhythm.  At this point, I only need to average 16:37 miles to get in at 24 hours.  When I get to the aid station, Ben has a grilled ham and cheese ready for me, and I take my time to eat the whole thing.  Keeping the calories coming in at a high rate is one of the critical factors.  My shoe change was not ideal as I have a blister on the inside of each of my heels.  They aren’t causing me much concern and at this point so I am going to leave them alone.

Mile 71.4    2:07:06 (17:11 avg./mile) Norwood Church

As the evening begins to turn into night, I run alone this whole section.  The section is on a lonely country road.  A vehicle passes by occasionally, but mostly the traffic is other crew vehicles.  At one point, I ask a couple of teenagers I see if the road is going uphill or flat.  They say it is very so slightly uphill, but I am looking good and they are confident I can keep running.  Less than a half mile from the aid station, I run by another crew and ask them how far the aid station is.  They say it isn’t far now, which was less than informative.  I arrive at the aid station right as the last elements of daylight are fading.  I turned on my required red blinking lights about 20 minutes ago.  I have one on both my front and back as this race requires.  As it is cooling off, I add a long-sleeve shirt, hat, and gloves.  Any rain chances ended several hours ago, and it looks like it is going to be a beautiful cool night.  I grab another handful of potato chips from the aid station before heading off into the night.

Mile 76.9    1:25:47 (15:36 avg./mile) Barnard Road and Klooster Road

I added the iPod at the last aid station to let the music try to keep me rolling in the darkness.  I have a small headlight, which is all I need with the smooth, paved surface.  Halfway into this section, I am fading.  So, I decide to go to the whip—a No Doze tablet.  I am nearly caffeine free in my daily life, so adding caffeine at this point has a very good effect.  I roll into this unmanned aid station feeling like I am on a good pace.  Ben offers me a bagel, but I decline and instead opt for an Access Bar.  I drink some chocolate milk before heading on into the dark night by myself.  Can I keep averaging 16-minute miles and finish under 24 hours?

Mile 82.4    1:26:20 (15:42 avg./mile) Holiday Gas Station

Darin eating the "free" bag of chips
I get a little boost as I come into Charlevoix.  This is the last town before Petoskey where the finish is.  I pass through about half of the town before the Holiday Gas station aid station finally appears.  Ben is here waiting as always.  This is a “manned” aid station that is essentially the convenience store.  All runners can just go in and grab anything we want and it will be charged to the race.  I look for a hot dog, but they aren’t ready as it is about 1am in the middle of the night.  So, I decide to get an ice cream bar and a bag of potato chips.  I have a rough calculation in my head that tells me I can average almost 17 minutes a mile and still make my 24-hour stretch goal.  My spreadsheet analysis now says that 16:59 is the magic number for a pace from this point.

Mile 85.8    1:03:40 (18:44 avg./mile) Little Traverse Wheelway Path

I make my way through the heart of downtown, and there is a group of partyers fooling around on the opposite side of the street from me.  When one of them spots me, they start cheering wildly.  It is fun and a slight motivation.  Leaving town, the darkness envelops me once again and soon I come upon Ben at this unmanned aid station.  In my spreadsheet with the mileage at each aid station, it says this aid station is at mile 87.5, which I am pretty sure is not correct when I get here in about an hour.  I have now used Google maps to estimate new mileage for these last couple of aid stations.  In the moment, I now wonder whether I have 4 or 6 miles to the next aid station.  At the time, I didn’t know that my pace has fallen off.  My post analysis says I need to average 16:34 per mile.  I sit down and eat most of the beef Ramen that Ben has prepared.  I pass on any hash browns, deciding to get moving before I get chilled.

Mile 91.7    1:54:22 (19:23 avg./mile) Cabin on Nine Mile Point Drive

This aid station takes me forever to get to.  Ben had heard and passed onto me that there was an issue with the cabin where this aid station is supposed to be.  I am hoping that the reason it is taking me longer than expected to get here that maybe the aid station has been moved, and I will be closer to the finish when I get there.  Unfortunately, when I finally get to the aid station, Ben asks me how I am doing and my reply is that it depends on what mile we are at.  He confirms with the aid station worker that this is mile 91.  The aid station isn’t actually at the cabin, but it is in the same place on the wheelway.  My rough calculations now say that I need to run faster than 15-minute miles as I have a little over two hours until 6am.  Can I do that?  I don’t know, but we are about to find out.  My post analysis says 14:39 per mile is necessary.
Sunrise near the finish

Mile 100.3 2:44:03 (19:05 avg./mile) FINISH!

Starting the last 8+ miles, I decide that another No Doze is in order if I have a chance of rallying.  I also decide to abandon my 10 and 5 rhythm of running and walking.  Instead, I run 20 and 25 minutes before walking for 5 minutes each time.  As can be seen by my final time, all of my attempts come up short.  My pace is only slightly faster than the previous section in the end.  I am about 2 miles away from Petoskey when the sun rises.  With only 10 minutes until 6am, reality sets in.  I walk most of the last two miles.  I am freezing cold as the temperature has now dropped to 40 degrees.  I meet the wife of a runner behind me, and she warns me not to miss the final turn.  As I enter into Petoskey, I resume my shuffle.  I make the final turn and Ben tells me I can stop running as I have crossed the finish line, which is a hand drawn chalk line on the ground.

Official Finishing Time          24:38:06

17th out of 41 starters (32 finishers under 30 hours)

It always feels good to finally stop running, and I am happy with my finish and effort.  I will think about only a couple things that I would have done differently, but overall, this was a very good race.  I would have had Ben meet me every two miles, gone down to the cabin and used the restroom (I had to duck into the woods on this last section), and added another layer to stay warmer.  But, I have now established my 100-mile PR at a new mark at the age of 50.

I have no other race plans for the rest of the summer.  My fall racing will begin with Stump Jump in Chattanooga in October.  Until then…

Never stop running,

Darin