Have you been following Cole Brauer on Instagram? She’s the first American woman to sail solo around the world and since finishing in Spain last week, she’s been on a nonstop media tour. One of her latest posts was a video of her speaking into the camera with tears in her eyes about how much she misses the ocean and watching the daily sunrises and sunsets. She pines for the simple rhythms of nature. I can relate. After hours, days, weeks and months of training in the woods, I truly understand how we are nature itself and when we immerse ourselves in it, over time, we experience what I believe is heaven on earth. But this euphoria comes at a cost. Whether it’s the danger of sailing rough seas for months alone or simply getting worn down and sick by miles of training, it can all be so grueling, the worst idea you’ve ever had and never, ever, you promise yourself, will you attempt it again. And then, by God’s grace or magic, the endorphins kick in and whatever was the worst idea becomes the best feeling in the world.
I have reached a threshold in my training. I’ve topped off the longest mileage weeks and I am now in “taper”. If you can call running 15-18 (f@#%&^*g!) miles this Saturday and 2-3 hours on Sunday a taper! I’m feeling the effects of such long miles. I am tired. I am endlessly hungry. I’m congested and I have a cough. ‘Tis the spring season with the lion and the lamb leapfrogging each other; anyone can fall prey to sickness. I am told that if you train for a long race, expect to feel depleted and especially the 2-3 weeks leading up to the race. So I tell myself, “time to buck up, old friend, you signed up for this so no complaining!” The truth is, I’m honored to be in the midst of this interesting science experiment called,” train and run a 100 miler as a 64 year old and see what happens.” The true test is less than three weeks away and ready or not, I’ll show up for more data collecting and reporting. The race begins at 6:30 am on April 6th.
While running, enjoying nature and testing hypotheses, I’m eating… a lot! Although an all-you-can-eat buffet served in the middle of woods on race day might sound pretty wonderful, don’t be fooled, it’s no picnic. I’m training to keep filling “the hole”, which, as you probably can imagine, is an extremely difficult endeavor to eat while running when you have no appetite. But a few favorite home-made foods rise to the top; peanut butter and jelly sticky rice sandwiches, avocado and salt, mashed potatoes, and a type of Gu I’ve made out of maltodextrin and applesauce. My back-up food and drink is Fritos and Coke. I’ll probably pass on the hot dogs and hamburgers. The goal is to consume the equivalent of 70 grams of carbs and .5 liters of electrolyte fluids every hour. My team at the base camp aid station will be refilling my hydration/food pack each time I complete the 12.5 mile lap (think Formula One efficiency.) I have such deep gratitude for these running buddies who will show up day and night for the purpose of helping me reach my goal. And when I plead, “I can’t eat another thing” there will be no pity as they hand me another rice sandwich and send me on my way.
Trail running is a team sport. In addition to feeding me, my support team will pace me through the night. My pacers will begin running with me at the 50 mile mark, around 6:30 PM. Wisp (Rachel Bell Kelley, my running coach extraordinaire), Nymph, Grub, Tiny, and Bongo (my dear husband) will each take turns with me, distracting me with stories and making sure that I am eating and drinking everything in my pack. The biggest hero is ET (aka Elizabeth Towe #balanced-movement.com) who will be my production manager and who, along with Wisp, have helped me devise my food and pace schedule and will make sure my team is all hands on deck. And if the wheels fall off my proverbial cart, ET and her husband Gyro (Brian Beatty) will help put me back together and implement Plan B to fit my new circumstances.
The experience of pushing my limits in running has in itself been a lot. Add to the running, writing blogs, painting, and raising awareness for Go Conscious Earth while keeping my day job and caring for grandchildren. No wonder I’m worn out, it’s just not sustainable. One thing I will take away from this year-long journey is that setting goals and showing up is a simple formula not easily executed. Published writers say that if you sit at your desk everyday and write, you’ll get better. Professional runners say, running is a skill, so get out there and run. Same with painting, just paint. It’s all hard work. We can’t be afraid to fail, otherwise we’ll never get started and we can’t fail if we've accomplished the steps along the way. I’ve heard it said that for marathoners, once they reach the starting line and they’ve completed their training goals, the race should simply be a celebration. A 100 mile race is a different kettle altogether and so how my body will perform is still a bit of a mystery. But two things I do know about the race, I’ll have a great team and I will have absolutely no regrets that I began it.
Buffet Table Flowers, Acrylic 8" x 10"
I'm running the Umstead100 Endurance Run, April 6-7 in Raleigh, NC while fundraising for Go Conscious Earth, whose mission is to empower the people of the Democratic Republic of Congo and Congo Basin Rainforest to protect their ancestral land upon which we all depend for survival. Please visit (and share!) my fundraising page GCE100 and make a donation for this critical cause. Also, please forward my collection of blogs to anyone who might be interested in learning more about my experience preparing for a very long race!
Thank you so much!
xo Anne
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