2012 GAC Fat Ass 50k Run

I signed up to run my first 100m (Viaduct Trail 100) race in July a few months ago. The GAC Fat Ass race was an easy selection as a preparation race for this goal of mine because it's relatively close, free and the course is really nice. On top of that it's was a good opportunity to test myself after 1 year of running ultras by returning to the first ultra I ever completed, the 2011 GAC Fat Ass which was on the same course but in completely different weather.

We arrived at Bradley Palmer State Park pretty early. I was with my former teacher and running partner Contois for the second year in a row. We parked, dropped off the food we brought for the aid station and relaxed for about a half hour. When I got dressed for the run I was sporting a long sleeve thermal, headband, t-shirt, compression shorts, double layered shorts, drymax socks and my new Montrail Mountain Masochist trail running shoes that I got for Christmas. I carried my new Ultimate Direction handheld throughout the run as well. I ended up ditching the headband and long sleeve after the first loop because it was too hot and switched to a different shirt after 3 loops.

The race was 5 loops of 10k throughout the statepark. Two laps went by easily enough and I was feeling confident. The fastest split I ran for a lap last year at this race was about 62 minutes, and today I did the first 2 laps in about 52 minutes a piece. I was feeling really confident and trying to work on a new racing technique for my own personal use. In past races I've gone out too slow only to find myself miss my goal time when I felt like I could push harder for longer after the races were over. This was more for a precaution than anything but I decided to spend today going out harder than normal on the first few laps and then take a "we'll see what happens" approach to the remainder of the race. This turned out to be very effective. I finished the first 12.4 miles feeling fresh and surprised at how fast the loops were going by.

The third loop I started to notice signs of dehydration. Turns out I was very dehydrated and that bit me in the ass at the end. I slowed down a little during this loop but still came charging in to the RHQ/aid station at around 54 minutes. I started experiencing "dead quad" in my right leg especially. For those not familiar it's a sharp painful stabbing of the quad that usually occurs because of electrolyte imbalance. When this began I thought it might be the new shoes which have more padding than I'm used to but I'm pretty confident it was more dehydration than anything. This sensation was only minor during this lap but would get worse as the race went on.

The fourth loop came and akin to last year turned out to be the hardest lap. I felt like shit because I was extremely dehydrated and didn't take good enough care of myself at the aid station by drinking enough fluid or eating enough. In previous races I also have eaten a lot more food at the aid stations, probably to the point of it being overkill or unnecessary. Today I finished the race hungry and that is definitely a first, but I think a good thing. I slammed a bottle of water and some mountain dew before this lap but it certainly was not enough at the time. This lap was also the first that I used my iPod during, which was also something new I was testing out. Instead of running with my iPod the entire race I decided to save it for motivation when the race entered the later stages. This worked very well because I felt a lot better and the hard miles went by a lot quicker with music in my ears. I think I'll employ this tactic in the future again for sure. I finished the fourth loop in about 63 minutes. There is a portion of this race that is hilly single track and since I opted to walk all of this my time was a lot slower on this lap.

Before the fifth lap I took care of myself by eating several hundred calories worth of food (including grilled cheese.... thank whoever brought those because they were delicious) and downing about 28oz of water and a few cups of mountain dew. My stomach was full and uncomfortable but I took off after about 8 minutes of resting and tried to pick it up the best I could. This loop was up and down as far as feeling good. It went by really slow because at that point I wanted the run to be over but I just kept plugging away. The dead quad got pretty bad but it would only last for about a minute at a time then go away for a few minutes. The worst part of it was about 10 minutes into the loop and it was bothering me so much I almost opted to call it a day early as there was a shortcut back to the car present. In retrospect I'm glad I didn't because the worst part faded soon after, and although it was painful it remained manageable. I got past the single track (what I consider the turning point in the 10k loop due to the hilly terrain) and just kept putting one foot in front of another until I came to the end of the driveway at the end. I was greeted by Contois who had already finished and he was shocked to see that I was done already.

I finished the race in 4:58 which is a 52 minute PR from the same course last year. I am beyond happy with that because anyone who follows me regularly knows I do not run too frequently and do not deserve a massive PR like that in all honesty. Contois finished in 4:03 and hit a big PR as well. Props to him for running a good race and exchanging good conversation on the way there and back.... and also for being cool with me melting chocolate into his passenger seat. Sorry!

In general I'm really pleased with how today turned out. I have 3 more races between now and Viaduct- a 6 hour, 50k and 50 miler. I think this was a great way to start off 2012 strong and make a good push towards the overall goal for the year. Writing this 4 hours later the only thing sore are my calves and achilles like usual. My feet actually feel surprisingly fresh. I'll probably be sore in a few areas tomorrow but other than that I can't really complain.


Things I Did Well:

- Paced myself properly
- Kept good running form
- Kept cool by changing clothes when needed

Things I Messed Up:

- Hydration
- Electrolytes
- Not eating enough calories

I plan to run a Smolov squat routine starting Wednesday that will last the remainder of January or about 3 weeks where I will only do a few minimal runs to focus on strength instead of endurance mostly.. That will still leave me about 6 weeks of solid running training before the TARC Spring Thaw 6 hour race that is on tap next.

A big thank you to the race directors and volunteers today. Thank you for putting on the race and doing such a good job handling all of the runners!