100km Completed- Kettle Morraine

Race Overview

• 38/76 registered runners finished 100km
• 37/133 registered runners finished 100mi
• Finishing Time: 15:33
• Unexpectedly ended in the dark
• Good, challenging race
• Got lost- ran apx 64.8 miles
• Feet are nastier, body’s sore
• The race was very well organized and everyone involved was extremely helpful and kind
• I would run this race again

Weather

• Race started at 6am and it was already very hot and humid
• Clothes soaked from sweat
• Occasional breeze that felt great
• Around mile 38-50, thunderstorm/lightening, tons of rain, was AWESOME
• Clothes became heavier, LOTS of chafing
• Temps became cooler, we were nervous we’d be too cold
• Rain stopped and we were able to finish in cooler weather, thankfully
• I heard a lot of runners dropped out of the race, or 100milers stopped at 100km instead due to the weather

Course

• Out 31.5 miles and back
• Lots of rocks all over, few roots, some grassy stretches, about 5 1 mile-4 mile stretches with no shade
• Long, gradual hills- see Elevation
• Made me realize I need to train on hills more
• The elevation at Gnawbone seemed higher but easier
• Only 1-2 miles of technical running
• I prefer a lot more technical running so that I stay interested during these long runs, but this race wasn’t too bad…better than HUFF
• As I was running along, I thought, “You’d have to be crazy to get lost” because 99% of the course was on a clear, single path. Whenever there was a fork in the road, the correct route was always marked.
• However after about 40 miles, I was following Dorn and he noticed that he didn’t see any footprints nearby and didn’t recognize the path. I was certain we were going the right way but after a little while, we came to an intersection where you could go one of four ways, and no clear path was marked.
• S0 unfortunately we had to backtrack our path and we estimated we were only a mile off path. I don’t know how we missed the marker because as we came to the right point, there was a big orange sign that was pointing to the right turn.
• It was annoying to be lost, going up and down the hills, and I am ready to run a race where there is no way one could get lost.

• Food

• Boost Protein Drink
• First bottle-mile 15; Took about 10 minutes to drink; Was thick and gross…but better than Gus
• Second bottle- mile 30; Took 2 minutes to drink; Tasted better…still a little gross
• Third bottle- mile 47; Gulped down in 15 seconds; Tasted wonderful, wish I brought more bottles
• Gus/Beans/Blocks
• Double Latte Gus are nasty
• Lemon Lime Sports Beans are gross too
• Blocks taste great in the beginning, horrible in the end- too thick

Random Food thoughts

• Despite what I have learned, I barely ate anything for the last 3 hrs of the race
• After being out there for so long, I got sick of eating those gus and such
• Finally I made myself eat some sports beans 45 minutes before finishing
• Had I not been running, I would have loved all of the food at the aid stations: big cookies, gummy bears, fruits, crackers, soups, bread
• Nothing sounds good while you’re actually running; I’m always scared of how the food will settle

Medicine/Electrolytes

• My legs were sore for the first 15 miles, which scared me since it was early in the race. They felt like they had the previous week- sore for no reason.
• I was taking salt regularly and I was drinking and eating a ton and my legs still hurt. I said “Screw it…I’m taking the medicine” and I took ibuprofen. Oh well.
• I brought a huge bag of S!CAPS and I took a pill every 30 minutes
• I drank my whole Camelbak (72 oz) four times at mile 23.4 and had only peed once
• Dorn said electrolytes made you retain water and I was skeptical
• However, I stopped taking the S!CAPS for the last 2 hrs of the race and I literally peed about 1x every 2 miles

Body Parts

• After I took medicine and my legs felt better, my feet were the only things that bothered me.
• I didn’t know I had blisters on my feet until I felt them pop while I was running.
• I walked the majority of the last 10-15 miles because I was so tired and my feet hurt so badly- especially over the rocks
• The feet are uglier today and I have cuts from chafing all over my legs and back. Pictures to come.

Randomness

• The bugs were awful at the end
• Since my whole body was sweaty and dirty and since I was going slow (walking or running), tons of mosquitoes and flies were all over me. It was very annoying to brush them off me every 2 seconds.
• I ran the whole race with Dorn except for the last two miles.
• A big thanks to him for staying back with me, as he is a faster runner.
• His walk was as fast as my run, or shuffle.
• A big thanks to Danny who ran about the last 12 miles with Dorn and I, including the very last two in the dark, despite my complaining. Both guys put up with the Alphabet Game I forced upon them
• It would have sucked to run the whole 15+ hours by myself, as there were not many runners there to talk to.

Post-race Happenings

• I felt so gross after I finished and I knew I needed to eat a lot, but nothing sounded good. I ate some soup and then went to my car.
• I had an hour drive to Heather’s house, where I was staying, and I knew it’d be tough to drive that far since it was around 10:45pm.
• She and Jim KINDLY offered to meet me halfway and pick me up
• I fell asleep as I was waiting for them at the gas station
• Right when we got home, I felt sick, dizzy and as if I was drunk
• I could barely walk and I fell over their steps when I entered their house
• I was so hungry but also so tired so I crawled up their stairs and went straight to bed- no shower or anything.
• It was awful- trying to lie in bed with everything spinning. Every time I moved a blister or cut from chafing would hurt.
• I honestly felt like I might die that night because I was so depleted of calories…haha.