After Hardrock I felt I was ready to start training for speed. I made it a goal to run the 2012 Mountain Masochist 50M as fast as I could and started training accordingly. It was late August when I overdid it with my Rogue Racers and gave myself Plantar Fasciitis. I was doing too much speedwork in too little shoe on feet that have been weakened since the Bear 100 in Sept. 2011.
But I caught it early and started the road to recovery with two and a half months to go until Mountain Masochist. I thought I stood a good chance of being healed by then.
I stopped running but I still had all of that energy that brought me to run ultras in the first place. It needed to be burned and there was so much to do around the house. Even though I wasn't running I was doing too much on my feet for it to really start healing. So I made the decision, with three weeks out, to start running again. Not much. Just a couple of runs a week until the November 3rd race.
The runs went well. I managed to get 6 runs in. Between 3 and 5.5 miles they ranged in distance. It was nice to get out again and run in the mountains. I hadn't lost my speed, just my cardiovascular performance.
My foot wouldn't hurt during the run but it would afterward for several days.
It was never really a question of whether I would run the 50 miles. I had more than a sneaking suspicion that I would run the Mountain Masochist and finish alright. I just wanted to enjoy the run, the people, and the chance of seeing my good friend Michelle run her first ultramarathon as well.
While hurricane Sandy delayed my arrival in Virginia by a couple of days I still found myself at the starting line on Saturday with Michelle, laughing and joking, then suddenly running. Michelle asked "Was that the start?"
We ran together for the first few miles, catching up. Then we hit a few streams and people were too dainty in crossing them. I took off. I excel at stream crossings and felt daring, wanting to go out harder than usual. I felt bad, Michelle and I had been having a great conversation...
Things went well to mile 26 when we encountered the snow for the first time climbing up to Buck Mountain. They told us this would be the worst year of Mountain Masochist. I was "thanking God" that we had snow. A "saving grace." A medium I excel on. The gravel roads were not.
Things continued to go well. I had a rough time entering the loop. I think my body's digestive system had a temporary hiccup. But when I hit the luge track that was the trail up Mount Pleasant I smiled and ran faster. The summit was beautiful and the sun was out!
The rest of the race went well. The ridge was long, evoking my "this has been going on too long" anger. Great snow up there as well. The 8+ inch deep snow making a great uneven luge track. I met a runner named JB and his wife and we talked Hardrock. Turns out his name was Jonathan Basham. Holy cow. Barkley finisher. If I had known I would have asked many more questions about sawbriers and raw chicken.
The finish was great. Lots of people and I actually felt pretty good for finishing 50 miles. Maybe I don't need to train any more? Ha Ha.
Michelle came in looking fresh, wearing fresh GU on her chin. Very enthusiastic for finishing her first 50 miler she said "I expected it would hurt more than it did." I suspect she has a good career as an ultrarunner ahead of her.
My thanks to her crew: Mike, her fiance. Jamie, her friend. Seeing them at a few aid stations was nice. It is always nice to see someone you know. It's also nice to meet new folks as well.
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