Playin’ Possum 50k - Race Recap

Our SRTT member, Harmony, gives us the low down on her first Ultra-Marathon: The Playin' Possum 50K! You can see it all over on her blog at "Mind Over Matter". 

Racing While Chasing the Light

by: Jennifer Pedicini, MRTTSRTT-Louisville, KY Member

May 24, 2017

I completed the Horse Capital marathon in Lexington this past weekend. My family and I went to Lexington on Friday afternoon. I was already in the zone. I ate mounds of pasta Thursday night so my insides could have a day to settle. Friday night dinner was grilled chicken, baked potatoes and broccoli.

I got up at 4:30am on Saturday to eat and have coffee. I had a chance to listen to music, stare at the wall and wake up. I picked up Kaitlyn at her hotel at 6:15. We got to Fasig Tipton around 6:30. We picked up our bibs and shirts, went to the bathroom and we were off at 7am.

I was obsessive about starting at the 11 min mile pace. My 1^st marathon was a learning experience in strategy so I wanted start off slow and make sure I still had something left in the end.

It was a beautiful morning. It was a picture of rolling fields, textured clouds, manicured grass and hedges and well-kept fences. There were barns, homes and sinewy horses surrounding us. We even saw a group of cows.

We met a runner named Bob (which was a good sign) running the half marathon. He was a good story teller. I was too far inside my head so I was happy to listen. He told us he was a diabetic. Running kept his numbers in check. He also said his mother was worried about him running. He said before she passed, he was able to run a marathon and have her see him finish. He also told us that Dale, our 4:55 pacer and his co-worker, was formerly 600 pounds. Dale lost the weight through diet and exercise. He was on the Today show and the Biggest Loser. Kaitlyn and I were sad when we separated from him at the 10 mile mark. 

At 15 miles, I was queasy. I stopped running and took one of my salt tablets. I felt better. I always suffer at this point, even in training. Kaitlyn talked me through it. I thought of my friend Amy who said she felt powerful at mile 18 during her first trail marathon. That’s where I wanted to be, even though the heat turned my insides. I asked Kaitlyn to tell me about the winters in Minnesota, where she was from. She told me they plugged their batteries during the night to make sure their cars started in the morning. We talked about the grey skies during the winters in MN and upstate NY, unlike the bright blue sky upon us.

I marked the moment at mile 19 because I was happy to be there. During my first marathon, I was demoralized seeing how far around the lake I had to go. This time I felt no knee pain, no gut pain and no wanting to be elsewhere.   

I saw Kaitlyn starting to suffer. I told her she was amazing. What else do you call someone who doesn’t have a history of running that has a bad first marathon and does another one a month later? She wanted me to leave her. I didn’t. I told her stories about my son telling some other boy at school in a haughty manner that what he colored was a leopard and not a cheetah. The boy told my son he could do whatever he wanted in the manner 5 year olds do.

Those last miles were a combination of walking and jogging. The Lexington farms were bathed in sunlight but the road was like the dessert. The temperature was in the high 80s and there was no shade. We took turns holding my water bottle, drinking from it, spraying each other and ourselves.

Towards the end, Kaitlyn said we had been running for 25 miles. It didn’t matter how we were doing it as long as we moved forward. I always thought of running as a solitary sport but in those moments, our pain and elation was shared.  At the finish, the boys and my sisters in law and Bob were waiting for us. Everyone was so proud of us.

It wasn’t the time I had hoped but my goal had been to finish mentally intact.  As a person with so many hang ups, I didn’t want one more. I didn’t want to cry. It was a long run and not something that defined me. There was no larger meaning in the numbers (you can see the things I had cried about during the first race) other than it being the result of the time I poured into it. My MRTT friends, who were texting me before and after, all knew this but it was something I would have to come to on my own.

I am a runner with depressive tendencies. The most important thing I came away with from this run was that I could be in pain and not let my mind go into dark places. I could decide that negative self-talk did not have their voice even when my mind was fatigued. I prepared for mental fatigue by overplaying a song by Rihanna.  When I was not able to talk to myself through running, the song would remind me that we were chasing the light and also making a choice to be happy.  

Runner's notes: I chose the Hal Higdon Novice 2 training plan. I had 17, 18 and 20 mile runs before this race. I was supposed to have a 19 mile run, which ended up being 11 miles because I injured my back that morning. I took it easy for about two weeks and saw a chiropractor until my back felt normal again. There was no speed work in the plan but I incorporated my own speed work in the end. I have been training with Kaitlyn, Ulises and the women of MRTT on road and trail since the winter. Running in the heat had its repercussions post-race. I needed a lot off food and fluid to recover. On the trails, I usually run with a hydration pack but I chose not to for this race thinking my torso would get hot.

The day before the race I used a foam roller and yoga to loosen my shoulders and my glutes. Those areas suffer from me sitting at a desk from my job. 

My nutrition during training was Tailwind and Honey Stinger waffles and chews. The waffles made me feel sick during the race. I was better off drinking Sword and eating pretzel bites and salt tablets at the aid stations.

The Run Happy Challenge

April showers bring May flowers! With flowers, also come holidays and gearing up for summer. Many of us are transitioning from spring race training to a lower intensity in the frequency or total mileage we are running. 

The goal of May’s challenge is to help keep you accountable (no matter what your running goals are or where you are in your training) and help you RUN HAPPY!

For this challenge, we want you to set a monthly mileage goal (we are a running club after all) and report into us regularly on how it is going. Please track your own mileage and update miles in your posts on the challenge page. Additionally, there will be a weekly challenge for you! You should take a photo of yourself completing the challenge and place it in the challenge page showing us how you are running happy. At the end of the month we will draw a winner from those of you who complete each challenge for a cool prize!

Week 1 (May 1-6)- Attend Tour de Ville and/or wear a Derby hat/Fascinator on your run this week.

Week 2 (May 7-13) - Run for a Mother! Dedicate a run this week to your mom/an important woman in your life to honor her. Feel free to post a photo of her in the challenge page (we won’t reshare outside of the group) and tell us why she makes you happy!

Week 3 (May 14-May 20) - Post a photo with May flowers!

Week 4 (May 21-May 31) – Memorial Day run – Dedicate a run this week to honor armed services members who have fallen during service to our country; wear red/white/blue on your run; post a photo of a family member or friend you honor on Memorial Day. This week we will run happy for and proud of the men and women who have served our country!

In order to participate, you should be a member. Join our closed Facebook group anytime in May to get started.  We hope to see you at a group run soon!

First Time Marathon Mama Shares Her Story

Written by Allison Reid, MRTT/SRTT Louisville Forerunner
April 30th, 2017

Today, I finished my first marathon and I’m still not quite sure what to say.  I’ll start by thanking everyone who supported me throughout my training, whether it was by going with me on training runs, sending me positive messages throughout my journey or showing up at the race to cheer…THANK YOU! A very sincere thank you!  Friendly smiles and familiar faces helped keep me going today.

Leading up to the race, I followed my training plan religiously.  For the past two weeks, I’ve really focused on stretching, nutrition and hydration. The evening before the race, I was fortunate to spend time with BOTH my mentor for road running (Coach Boyd) and my mentor for trail running (Trail Mama Marian).  I was ECSTATIC when Marian signed up for the race, and I was presented with the opportunity to run my very FIRST marathon with BOTH of my mentors!  AMAZING! STARS ALIGNED!  Race morning I felt pretty good. Storms kept me up quite a bit throughout the night, so the first 30 minute delay was actually quite welcomed.  I was pleased with my pre-race input and output, and we all know how important that is!  We walked to the race, and quickly learned it was delayed again…and again.  I didn’t feel nervous. There was a lot of standing around, BUT I loved interacting with other runners and taking lots of pre-race selfies. 

My moms running group poses for photos before the race.

We finally started running, close to 2 hours later than expected.  It started to rain, but that did not bother me…I was prepared for rain.  What my body was not prepared for was the hot, humid weather that followed.  I usually don’t mind the heat at all, but I just didn’t adapt well during the race. The first 3 miles, I felt out of sync, but that isn’t atypical for me.  I reminded myself not to make any judgments about my race until after mile 3.  Miles 3, 4, 5 and 6 passed, and I continued to struggle to find my groove.  Since last fall, I have completed 4 half-marathons and numerous 16+ mile training runs.  I felt prepared, and certainly did not anticipate any issues this early in the race! We didn’t start out too fast. Our pace was slower than my usual pace. Marian and Stephanie checked on me often, probably concerned I was being so quiet.  I answered with short responses “fine,” “good,” etc. and tried to squeak out smiles. But I did not feel fine.  My heart rate concerned me, as it peaked at 189 and my breathing just seemed “off.”  For the first 9 miles, Marian and Stephanie knew when to push me, when to make me smile, when I needed a laugh, when to tell me a story and reminded me to fuel/hydrate.  And ultimately, they knew when I needed to fall back.  I’ve never said, “I can’t” during a run or a race.  But today I could not keep the planned pace.  Separating from them was not easy.  I cried because I did not want to interfere with their ability to PR (personal record), I cried because I was nervous to run the remaining 17 miles solo and I grieved because I was working so hard and I could not maintain what is usually a VERY comfortable pace for me. I promised Stephanie I had an alternate plan…but my goal didn’t change, I was going to finish a marathon!  I begged, yes BEGGED, her to keep running…without me. She didn’t go without a fight and a few tears.  I am so grateful that she showed such dedication to stay by my side, but I’m glad she agreed to keep running and achieve her PR! 

So around mile 9, I decreased my pace and my heart rate dropped.  I decided to adopt a walk-run plan.  I tried walking 0.25 miles and running 0.75; however, I really ended up walking more and more with every mile.  I reevaluated frequently, I hydrated more than I ever have (well over 2 liters on the course doesn’t help pace, haha). I struggled to keep up with when to fuel, so when in doubt I took a salt pill and ate a cliff blok. I worked very hard on remaining positive.  I focused on 1 mile at a time…sometimes I was only able to focus on finishing a half or a quarter mile. I looked for friendly faces, and got so overwhelmed with emotions every time I saw a familiar face.  As I looked into the eyes of friends and unfamiliar spectators, I often saw sincere respect for what I was doing and felt like they believed in me…likely more than I believed in myself during the challenging moments.  I hugged, high fived and sometimes cried when I saw a fellow MRTT mama.  I called my husband several times, and spoke to Amy G. on the phone at a particularly low point.  I’m sure there will be at least one race picture of me on the phone. I connected with other runners struggling along the route, as we encouraged each other to keep going.

Staying positive wasn’t easy, but it was key!  I fought the urge to walk off the course numerous times.  I found humor in my irrational thinking when I seriously considered jumping in front of a moving vehicle (not just once, but twice during the race) because a medical DNF (did not finish) seemed more excusable than a DNF because I quit. I actually took at short seated rest break (in a porta potty, YUK), so I could rally up enough mental and physical energy to keep going.  At one point I remember thinking, “Why is my body failing me today?”  And I quickly reminded myself…I was going to finish a MARATHON, my first marathon…TODAY.  I reminded myself, I could NOT even run ONE mile without stopping this time last year.  My body was not failing me. My body is strong and my body can do hard things.  My expectations were all that needed to be adjusted.  I threw any time related goal out the window. I stopped trying to predict how my slowed pace would impact my finish time.  I stopped trying to figure out what time I would finish, don’t do it…it will overwhelm you. I tried to just go with the flow, not always easy for me! I focused on whatever seemed attainable…making it through a certain song, running to a tree a few feet away or just keep placing one foot in front of the other. I focused on what an accomplishment it is to be able to run, walk or crawl 26.2 miles. I’ve never been so happy to see a finish line.  I tried my hardest. I gave it everything I had.  I literally left it all out on the course. I finished and I did not end up in a medical tent.  SUCCESS!

Receiving my Half Classic Medal!

Friends at the finish line reminded me of what a great success it is to finish a marathon; I needed that reminder…AGAIN. Experienced runners reminded me…sometimes you just have an “off” race, just like you have an “off” training run. They assured me one race does not define you, but can help make you stronger! I can’t pinpoint what would have improved my race today…I didn’t have a specific injury or intense, unbearable pain…it was just an “off” race due to circumstances out of my control. I will not overanalyze my experience; I will not dwell on what happened or didn’t happen.  Today I will cherish my accomplishment, and be proud to have successfully completed my first marathon.  Not to brag or anything, but I did PR today. I hope to PR my next marathon too. J  Until then, I’m going to focus on biking and learning to swim in addition to running, because Coach Boyd and I have our first sprint triathlon to crush this summer! Here’s my challenge to you, “Set a goal so big you can’t achieve it until you grow into the person who can.” -Anonymous

Happy to finish my first marathon and celebrate with friends.