Last year I felt I wimped out at mile 53 and regretted dropping for a year. This weekend, a bad stomach forced me to drop at mile 31. No regrets this year; there was no other decision to be made.
Originally, my race report was going to be this “OC 2011, Disaster, DNF”. But while on a run an hour ago I realized that 1) something is to be learned from anything and 2) somebody somewhere will appreciate a good stomach distress story. But I will try and keep it brief and clean. And brief.
The first 14.5 miles went well. I was out fast and leading a group of runners in the dark through the early hills. Into the first aid station I flew down some steep hills passing a few runners, and after blasting through the station I passed about 5 more. I started to notice leg cramping like at Pisgah so I backed off the pace a little and gave up some places and wanted to be sure to hold back some energy. At the 14.5 mile aid station (and turnaround on the loop) I caught up to the group of runners ahead. I could tell something was off. Last year I knocked down a bunch of grilled cheese but this year after one bite I was nauseous. I grabbed a bunch of food for my pack and moved on and noticed I got very cold.
As soon as I started to climb I felt queasier and as I ran down the hills it got worse. First I started walking; nothing got better so I ran again. This time I started to cramp. Between mile 16 and 19 I had a few cramps that left me on the side of the trail doubled over. Finally, I tried to go to the bathroom but nothing. I passed a shelter at mile 20 but moved on since my failed bathroom experiment led me to believe I couldn’t go. A mile later I ran into the woods to go to the bathroom. After finishing- I knew that this was not the cause of the issues. I moved on, and a bit later my stomach grumbled the longest gnarliest gurgle. I threw my pack down and ran down in to the woods- sparse woods at that. I could not find a big enough tree to hide behind and the trail curved so hiding was a real issue. Since it was a steep downhill I needed to hang on to the tree to keep from falling backwards. Then I realized that I was wearing loose shorts on top of my compression shorts and hoped I wasn’t trashing them while they lay on the ground. Long story short- it was quick, painful and downright ugly. But I thought it may be over.
Back down the trail, the cramping continued and I walked along. I finally got to the 23 mile aid station, threw my pack at the volunteer and ran for the porta potty. After another unfriendly episode- I hung at the aid station for a while. I tried to eat and drink but it didn’t sit well. I finally headed back to the hills and tried to get back in the race. On the first downhill- cramps and nausea started when I ran and I finally knew the day was over. I could not run/eat or drink so another 31 miles wasn’t sensible. I just wanted to get back to the start. I ran into somebody I knew leaving the woods so I finished the first loop with him. At the 31 mile aid station, I decided to give it one last shot. If I could tolerate food and drink, I would head back out. A cup of ginger ale and a few crackers in and I was running for the bathroom. Game over. After coming out I dropped from the race. I finished the first 50k loop in 9 hours.
I missed Dean’s finish of his first 50k Ultra after losing 95 pounds and starting to train. Beastly performance by Dean. I was indisposed at the time, and for most of the night.
Sometimes, things just happen- after reviewing the internet when returning home we found that the details of my experience- minute details, were mentioned frequently for those who had gall bladders removed.
The positive- after uploading my watch data it had me at 9 hours for 50k, but had 808 as the moving time so I lost 45 or so minutes “messing around”. That also does not account for the time I wanted to run but walked since my stomach hurt. Bottom line was I got a decent workout- the second 50k in 3 weeks which is new for me and leaves me ready to start training for my November 19 50 miler. As long as my stomach settles and normalizes….
Originally, my race report was going to be this “OC 2011, Disaster, DNF”. But while on a run an hour ago I realized that 1) something is to be learned from anything and 2) somebody somewhere will appreciate a good stomach distress story. But I will try and keep it brief and clean. And brief.
The first 14.5 miles went well. I was out fast and leading a group of runners in the dark through the early hills. Into the first aid station I flew down some steep hills passing a few runners, and after blasting through the station I passed about 5 more. I started to notice leg cramping like at Pisgah so I backed off the pace a little and gave up some places and wanted to be sure to hold back some energy. At the 14.5 mile aid station (and turnaround on the loop) I caught up to the group of runners ahead. I could tell something was off. Last year I knocked down a bunch of grilled cheese but this year after one bite I was nauseous. I grabbed a bunch of food for my pack and moved on and noticed I got very cold.
As soon as I started to climb I felt queasier and as I ran down the hills it got worse. First I started walking; nothing got better so I ran again. This time I started to cramp. Between mile 16 and 19 I had a few cramps that left me on the side of the trail doubled over. Finally, I tried to go to the bathroom but nothing. I passed a shelter at mile 20 but moved on since my failed bathroom experiment led me to believe I couldn’t go. A mile later I ran into the woods to go to the bathroom. After finishing- I knew that this was not the cause of the issues. I moved on, and a bit later my stomach grumbled the longest gnarliest gurgle. I threw my pack down and ran down in to the woods- sparse woods at that. I could not find a big enough tree to hide behind and the trail curved so hiding was a real issue. Since it was a steep downhill I needed to hang on to the tree to keep from falling backwards. Then I realized that I was wearing loose shorts on top of my compression shorts and hoped I wasn’t trashing them while they lay on the ground. Long story short- it was quick, painful and downright ugly. But I thought it may be over.
Back down the trail, the cramping continued and I walked along. I finally got to the 23 mile aid station, threw my pack at the volunteer and ran for the porta potty. After another unfriendly episode- I hung at the aid station for a while. I tried to eat and drink but it didn’t sit well. I finally headed back to the hills and tried to get back in the race. On the first downhill- cramps and nausea started when I ran and I finally knew the day was over. I could not run/eat or drink so another 31 miles wasn’t sensible. I just wanted to get back to the start. I ran into somebody I knew leaving the woods so I finished the first loop with him. At the 31 mile aid station, I decided to give it one last shot. If I could tolerate food and drink, I would head back out. A cup of ginger ale and a few crackers in and I was running for the bathroom. Game over. After coming out I dropped from the race. I finished the first 50k loop in 9 hours.
I missed Dean’s finish of his first 50k Ultra after losing 95 pounds and starting to train. Beastly performance by Dean. I was indisposed at the time, and for most of the night.
Sometimes, things just happen- after reviewing the internet when returning home we found that the details of my experience- minute details, were mentioned frequently for those who had gall bladders removed.
The positive- after uploading my watch data it had me at 9 hours for 50k, but had 808 as the moving time so I lost 45 or so minutes “messing around”. That also does not account for the time I wanted to run but walked since my stomach hurt. Bottom line was I got a decent workout- the second 50k in 3 weeks which is new for me and leaves me ready to start training for my November 19 50 miler. As long as my stomach settles and normalizes….
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