Kettle Moraine 100 miler

The short version – I finished in 20 hours and 28 minutes. Good for 14th place out of 126 starters. Full results are here.

The long version – The weather couldn’t have been better. It was overcast, mid-50’s to low 60’s for the temp, and just a little bit of rain. I felt great in all aspects – physically and mentally. I had an excellent crew lined up with uncle Dale pacing from the 100K point on. A friend of mine, Ben Niles, was planning on running in the Night Fun Run (38 miles) which started near the time that I expected to be back around Nordic (Start/Finish line). So maybe I’d get to run with him as well….

As I approached the start/finish area I noticed quite a few familiar faces and said hello to those I knew.

My strategy for this race was to minimize my time spent at aid stations, carry both of my bottles in my new Amphipod belt so I didn’t have to hold them the entire time, and try to stay at a very consistent pace throughout the race.

My pace was fairly consistent throughout most of the race, but was a bit faster than I had planned at the start. I was at a 19 hour pace until maybe mile 50, when I started to feel nauseous, and began to feel the urge to hurl often. I ate lots of ginger, but I couldn’t put the bottle of Perpetuem (My calorie source) to my lips, or there was an almost automatic gag reflex as soon as the bottle hit my lips.

As I came into the 100K turn around, I was feeling quite sick and hadn’t been able to take in much in the way of any kind of fuel, weather solid or fluid. Dale suggested that I slam an Ensure, eat more ginger, take a few ibuprofen, take some Endurolytes (electrolytes), eat some caffeinated gum, and stop being a wuss!

Ben was able to get started early on his night fun run (Since when is a 38 miler that starts at night and is on 98% single trac trails considered a “fun run”??? I’m still trying to figure that one out). Doesn’t matter, I was very happy to get the chance to run with him and my uncle from 100K to the finish. They kept the mood light with some “humor” (They should both keep their day jobs).

Dale kept me on my toes re:everything from correcting my gait to trying to diagnose what was causing my nausea. Dale thought it was either my new belt bouncing on my stomach, or lack of electrolytes. Looking back I think it was the lack of electrolytes.

By the time I arrived at Rice Lake (81.5 miles) I was toast. I hadn’t been eating anything at all, and wasn’t drinking enough either. I sat down here for the first time all day and wondered how I was going to get back to the finish. If I was going to I’d have to do it on guts alone (not much left in the tank there), or I’d have to figure out the nausea and start getting some calories down the hatch.

Turns out I wasn’t ever able to get much down after Rice Lake, but was able to keep my feet moving and get back to the finish line just 28 minutes over my target time of 20 hours. In the process I set a new 100 mi PR, beating my previous mark by 2 hours and 26 minutes, and beat my time from the same race last year by 3 hours.

There’s no way I could have done it without all of the race volunteers, my awesome crew including my awesome wife Cortney, my parents Janie and Lee, Uncle Phill and his nephew Will-I-am, Uncle Dale and Aunt Peggy, and Ben. That’s just the people that were there. My other sources of motivation include my three beautiful daughters, my other friends and family that couldn’t make the trip, and a group called UPS for DownS that is extremely close to my family’s heart.

If you’d like to find out more about UPS for DownS, or would like to donate, please click here.

National Running Day!

Today is National Running Day! Celebrate by - RUNNING today! Click HERE for a cool story from Time magazine. I'm currently reading this guy's book - Born to Run. I figured it would be good to read and get my mind focused on the Kettle Moraine 100 miler this weekend. Enjoy....