On the weekend of August 8th, I participated in my second ever 24 hour trail run. I decided to run the Dirty Girls 24H race to see if I can better my distance from the previous year - 125km. My training leading up to the event was as basic as it got. I am continuing to get my inflamed iliotibial band treated by Dr. Steph. While it is getting better, I know that I still have to be mindful of what makes it tick. Leading up to the event, I focused on cross-training and stretching, getting in a few runs where time, weather and physical feeling permit. The weekend before, I paced Fred at the Burning River 100M race for the final 40 miles. Because I focused on recovery, I actually felt so good, I wished I actually ran the race. As a result, I plan to add this race to my roster for 2010.
I was smart enough to take Friday off from work. I spent much of the day rearranging my gear from the weekend before and getting some sleep. Finally, in the evening, I made a move on the road. I made one stop at Walmart to get a sleeve for my mp3 player so that I can have it on the course with me at will. I arrived at the venue in Mansfield, just as the sun was beginning to set. I greeted Kinga, Stephan, Kevin and Sawaki - who were also preparing to turn in. I also greeted Diane who was not feeling to well that night.
Once I staked my claim to a spot for my tent, Rick and Gavin were there to help me set up. After shooting the breeze for a bit, I quickly had my dinner and started to organise my gear for the next morning. Before turning in, I quickly sent a quick message to Mike K., giving him an update as to what will be up for the next day.
Morning came too soon. My sleep was fair but it was there. I quickly freshened up, and put my gear that I would need closer to the start/finish area so that I wouldn't have to wander over to my tent during the race. As with all other ultras, it was one big happy gathering amongst us as we reconnected with friends we haven't seen since other races.
Diane - who was feeling much better - started the race promptly at 8h00. My goal was to stay within 1:30 for each 10K loop during the day. I am proud to say that I was pretty much within my goal pace for much of the day. There was a lot of banter along the course as people were chatting in groups, or talking smack to the runner that was within sight. I ran with Rick for a bit. That man would not stop talking! Eventually, I got really moody and started tuning him out. Ron saw us running together and yelled "What are you doing running with my girl?" We had a great laugh out of this one. Later on, when I was alone, Ron came up alongside me and said that he had a bone to pick with me. It turns out that Char let him in on the fact that I was wearing a straw while pacing Fred at Burning River. I had a good chuckle out of this for the rest of the event.
The going started to get tough after completing 50 miles. I was starting to run low on energy and wasn't feeling good. In fact, my mood really changed and I didn't want to talk to anyone. After 90km, I wandered into the cabin where there were a bunch of runners who declared their intentions to bail. Kinga and Stephan were among them. I was given something solid to eat and I was gathering my wits and planning on what to do next. I then picked up my phone to give Mike an update as I hadn't touched the phone all day. After sending a message indicating that I was really starting to feel low, Mike called me and spoke to me for a few minutes. The words of encouragement were what I really needed and I quickly changed into some warmer clothing and prepared to run. I also lucked out and got myself a pacer. Char, who was helping with the timing, was on hand to pace. She was originally supposed to go out with Laurie - Ron's daughter - but Laurie started feeling really sick and she elected to sleep it off for a few hours.
Char and I set off into the night. I had a great loop with her. She and I started laughing at just about anything. The focus of it all was the 5K aid station which was known as the cat house. One of the volunteers actually brought her cat to the race and they were stationed at that aid station. The volunteer was an odd type, but very vibrant. Char and I started cracking up at the prospect of Ron meeting up with the cat... hehe... We later learned that the cat was the butt of many night jokes throughout the entire race and the jokes were definitely not clean. Even Stephan was in disbelief over the fact that the volunteer brought her cat to the race.
After getting to the start/finish, I elected to take a 30 minute nap as I was starting to fade. Char then did a loop with Theresa. Rick came in and asked if I was going out again. I confirmed the affirmative. He then made a statement that there is no way I could do a two hour loop in the dark. I retorted "Can't is not a word! I just did a two hour loop!" This brought about an applause from Jenn, who was timing nearby.
Laurie's son, Matt, took me around for a loop and we had a great time talking about some of his activities. It made me proud to know that this 16 year old was on the right path in life. His loop around made a total of 30K for him. He did two with Theresa earlier and this loop almost doubled the most he had ever run. We were all proud of him. I was on my own for the next loop but I managed to get through it, with the help of a 5 minute nap at the cat house. When I got back to the start/finish, Theresa and Charlotte were there and I decided to go out with them. I was feeling great running with them, the sun was also starting to rise along with my energy level. I lasted for 7.5km with them before they pulled ahead. I got to the start/finish line with one hour to go...
After using the washroom and refilling my bottle, I declared that I was going back out there. Rick was in the field when he saw me sprint off. He declared that I would not be able to make the entire loop in an hour. I knew that from last year's experience but I wanted as much as I could get and 5k was going to be it. I yelled "Don't tell me what I can't do!" as I was heading into the woods. The run was hurried but it was also smooth. I hit the my stride, running when I needed to, and walking when I needed to. About 3k in, I saw Rick sprinting behind me. He later told me that when I yelled at him, he got the motivation to go the extra distance. He bagged 7.5km in the final hour.
After getting to the cat house, I grabbed something to eat and sat down until I got a ride back to the start/finish. My total distance was the same as last year - 125km. Considering that I ran 40M the week before, this was pretty good. I think many people were expecting less of me as a result. This put me in eighth place overall, and third in the female age category.
We really lucked out with the weather. While it rained lightly during part of the race, we were spared from the storm that touched down right after the awards presentation. I ended up waiting out the storm and snoozing in the cabin before driving home. Once the sun came out, it was hot. On the way through Caledon, I decided to stop and get a filling meal at Flapjacks Restaurant. The gluten free pancakes on the menu were really good. There are plans to include Flapjacks on my training run schedule. Details to follow...
After getting home, I quickly hit the shower, set up my tent to dry, and relaxed before organising my gear for work the next day.
While I would love to run Dirty Girls next year, my tentatively planned events may conflict with the race. I will still mark it down on my calendar and may volunteer for the event if I cannot run it. Awesome Third Edition Dirty Girl! I'm loving the race more and more and more...
Photos taken by Tony Power, along with race results, can be viewed here.
I was smart enough to take Friday off from work. I spent much of the day rearranging my gear from the weekend before and getting some sleep. Finally, in the evening, I made a move on the road. I made one stop at Walmart to get a sleeve for my mp3 player so that I can have it on the course with me at will. I arrived at the venue in Mansfield, just as the sun was beginning to set. I greeted Kinga, Stephan, Kevin and Sawaki - who were also preparing to turn in. I also greeted Diane who was not feeling to well that night.
Once I staked my claim to a spot for my tent, Rick and Gavin were there to help me set up. After shooting the breeze for a bit, I quickly had my dinner and started to organise my gear for the next morning. Before turning in, I quickly sent a quick message to Mike K., giving him an update as to what will be up for the next day.
Morning came too soon. My sleep was fair but it was there. I quickly freshened up, and put my gear that I would need closer to the start/finish area so that I wouldn't have to wander over to my tent during the race. As with all other ultras, it was one big happy gathering amongst us as we reconnected with friends we haven't seen since other races.
Diane - who was feeling much better - started the race promptly at 8h00. My goal was to stay within 1:30 for each 10K loop during the day. I am proud to say that I was pretty much within my goal pace for much of the day. There was a lot of banter along the course as people were chatting in groups, or talking smack to the runner that was within sight. I ran with Rick for a bit. That man would not stop talking! Eventually, I got really moody and started tuning him out. Ron saw us running together and yelled "What are you doing running with my girl?" We had a great laugh out of this one. Later on, when I was alone, Ron came up alongside me and said that he had a bone to pick with me. It turns out that Char let him in on the fact that I was wearing a straw while pacing Fred at Burning River. I had a good chuckle out of this for the rest of the event.
The going started to get tough after completing 50 miles. I was starting to run low on energy and wasn't feeling good. In fact, my mood really changed and I didn't want to talk to anyone. After 90km, I wandered into the cabin where there were a bunch of runners who declared their intentions to bail. Kinga and Stephan were among them. I was given something solid to eat and I was gathering my wits and planning on what to do next. I then picked up my phone to give Mike an update as I hadn't touched the phone all day. After sending a message indicating that I was really starting to feel low, Mike called me and spoke to me for a few minutes. The words of encouragement were what I really needed and I quickly changed into some warmer clothing and prepared to run. I also lucked out and got myself a pacer. Char, who was helping with the timing, was on hand to pace. She was originally supposed to go out with Laurie - Ron's daughter - but Laurie started feeling really sick and she elected to sleep it off for a few hours.
Char and I set off into the night. I had a great loop with her. She and I started laughing at just about anything. The focus of it all was the 5K aid station which was known as the cat house. One of the volunteers actually brought her cat to the race and they were stationed at that aid station. The volunteer was an odd type, but very vibrant. Char and I started cracking up at the prospect of Ron meeting up with the cat... hehe... We later learned that the cat was the butt of many night jokes throughout the entire race and the jokes were definitely not clean. Even Stephan was in disbelief over the fact that the volunteer brought her cat to the race.
After getting to the start/finish, I elected to take a 30 minute nap as I was starting to fade. Char then did a loop with Theresa. Rick came in and asked if I was going out again. I confirmed the affirmative. He then made a statement that there is no way I could do a two hour loop in the dark. I retorted "Can't is not a word! I just did a two hour loop!" This brought about an applause from Jenn, who was timing nearby.
Laurie's son, Matt, took me around for a loop and we had a great time talking about some of his activities. It made me proud to know that this 16 year old was on the right path in life. His loop around made a total of 30K for him. He did two with Theresa earlier and this loop almost doubled the most he had ever run. We were all proud of him. I was on my own for the next loop but I managed to get through it, with the help of a 5 minute nap at the cat house. When I got back to the start/finish, Theresa and Charlotte were there and I decided to go out with them. I was feeling great running with them, the sun was also starting to rise along with my energy level. I lasted for 7.5km with them before they pulled ahead. I got to the start/finish line with one hour to go...
After using the washroom and refilling my bottle, I declared that I was going back out there. Rick was in the field when he saw me sprint off. He declared that I would not be able to make the entire loop in an hour. I knew that from last year's experience but I wanted as much as I could get and 5k was going to be it. I yelled "Don't tell me what I can't do!" as I was heading into the woods. The run was hurried but it was also smooth. I hit the my stride, running when I needed to, and walking when I needed to. About 3k in, I saw Rick sprinting behind me. He later told me that when I yelled at him, he got the motivation to go the extra distance. He bagged 7.5km in the final hour.
After getting to the cat house, I grabbed something to eat and sat down until I got a ride back to the start/finish. My total distance was the same as last year - 125km. Considering that I ran 40M the week before, this was pretty good. I think many people were expecting less of me as a result. This put me in eighth place overall, and third in the female age category.
We really lucked out with the weather. While it rained lightly during part of the race, we were spared from the storm that touched down right after the awards presentation. I ended up waiting out the storm and snoozing in the cabin before driving home. Once the sun came out, it was hot. On the way through Caledon, I decided to stop and get a filling meal at Flapjacks Restaurant. The gluten free pancakes on the menu were really good. There are plans to include Flapjacks on my training run schedule. Details to follow...
After getting home, I quickly hit the shower, set up my tent to dry, and relaxed before organising my gear for work the next day.
While I would love to run Dirty Girls next year, my tentatively planned events may conflict with the race. I will still mark it down on my calendar and may volunteer for the event if I cannot run it. Awesome Third Edition Dirty Girl! I'm loving the race more and more and more...
Photos taken by Tony Power, along with race results, can be viewed here.
Way to push through the pain! Great job Gailanne.
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