For Better or For Worse: Kristen's Promise Land 50k Race Report

Going into Promise Land, I felt prepared for the distance but maybe not so much the elevation gain that was to come along with it. I'm not a strong mountain runner (yet), so in the weeks preceding the race, I decided to focus on my strengths: nutrition, downhill running and being mentally prepared for a long tough day. What I learned is that even the best nutritional plan will quickly go out the window in the face of GI distress … and the mental battle that ensued was far more challenging than completing the race without any extra self-induced challenges. I can’t pinpoint what caused me to feel so incredibly nauseated and sick throughout the race, but I have a suspicion it was combination of factors ... Either way, it’s humbling and a tad bit embarrassing as a dietitian to admit that nutrition was the cause of my downfall. Running for 6+ hours is still a relatively new concept for me and I know challenges like these come with the territory of stepping outside my comfort zone. Mistakes will happen and there are always lessons to be learned. So I’ll start my report with this: Races like this one are why I maintain the motto “respect the distance.” It doesn’t matter how many long races or training runs I’ve completed, I will always respect the fact that anything can happen out there…

VT had 14 Hokies racing...simply incredible! 

Friday I was feeling pretty good: My nervousness was behind me and I was in high spirits, excited to run and finally experience Promise Land for myself. After many traffic delays, we arrived at the race around 7pm, set up camp, enjoyed the pre-race festivities (aka listened to Horton talk forever) and went to bed early. I slept well and Horton did a good job waking up the entire camp with his bullhorn around 4:30am. Pre-race was uneventful, though I struggled to eat my breakfast and get other things moving… I had a feeling that would come back to haunt me but tried to not worry about it. At 5:30am sharp we were off.

Perhaps a little too happy for 5 am? Nah.

The start was pretty neat with bouncing headlamps lighting up the trail like fireflies. I’ve heard people describe the first climb of the day as being “in your face” steep... to me it felt more like a slap in the face: “Wake up, Kristen!” Ready or not, this race was happening. The 4,000 ft of elevation gain in the first 11-12 miles presented quite the mental battle in maintaining a positive attitude. I could have easily become discouraged early on, instead I decided to be patient and essentially told myself to “shut up and run.” The goal was to run an uncomfortably conservative pace to start… Anyway, I covered the first 4 mile climb in roughly 52 minutes and tippy top of the mountain in roughly 2 hours, positioned somewhere around 8^th female.

I think I ran most of the race with one glove on and
one off? Not sure why, haha.

During those first 2 hours, I noticed that my stomach was feeling unsettled but took some tums and figured it would pass. I chalked it up to the tough climb. Regardless, it’s not a good feeling to look at your fuel early in a race and feel queasy... Following the long climb was a nice section of gradual downhill and I set off to gradually catch a group of girls ahead of me. I made a concerted effort to eat more here but my body just wasn’t tolerating things like normal. At this point I was 2.5 hrs in and fighting a delicate balance between needing to push the calories and avoiding getting more sick.

After Sunset Field was a long stretch of technical downhill, which to me felt more like an obstacle course with the constant dodging of rocks and having to carefully plant each step.  It was fun but mentally taxing, at which point I was thankful to have pretty resilient ankles. This downhill section (near mile 15) marked the "high point" of my race, yet somehow I just couldn’t comprehend running 19-20 more miles (the race is actually a solid 34 miles, not 31 as advertised). At this point I forced down my favorite flavored gel, mocha, and reminded myself to take one section at a time...

Aid station 4, Cornelius Creek, marks roughly the halfway point of the race. I went through this point right at 3 hours and was happy with my progress. After refilling my pack, I picked up a pretzel and half of a potato hoping those would sit better with my stomach... no such luck. At this point was a steady downhill on pavement and though I managed a sub-8 mile here, my nausea continued to worsen and before I knew it I was bent over in pain. A few minutes later I tried to eat again and immediately threw up, which of course wiped out what little energy I had. I proceeded to stumbled into the woods with hopes that the worse was behind me...

Fun times...

The next few miles were slow, but I was moving. I managed to get down some gingerale and a fourth of a PBJ sandwich at the aid station, not much. I was just starting to get back into a groove again somewhere near mile 21 when I felt a very sudden and sharp pain in my left ankle. I knew I had gotten bitten or stung by something as I screamed pretty loudly (ok maybe a few times? =), jumped into the air then sprinted a few hundred yards to get away. Ok, I'll admit to being pretty skittish. Either way, it certainly woke me up and left me feeling rattled/ paranoid. My ankle was hurting but I was too afraid to look down. I figured if it was something bad I was better off getting to the next aid station sooner rather than later. Thankfully we later discovered it had been a painful bee sting and nothing worse. 

Around mile 25 I made it back to Cornelius Creek, which marked the start of the tough climb up Apple Orchard Falls. This was the lowest point of my day- After looking at the aid station foods with disgust I sat on a rock, inspected my ankle (red and swollen but fine) and contemplated whether to continue. I was facing the hardest climb of the day while running on fumes, dehydrated and with the sight of water making me sick… a DNF was really tempting and the old me probably would have done so without hesitation. But I knew that a DNF would also mean not finishing the Lynchburg Ultra Series and that my husband would be waiting patiently for me at the finish. Oh, and we had a wedding to get to... I opted to keep going, slowly at best, reluctantly acknowledging that the racing portion of my day was likely over. This section presented the worst mile splits I never hope to see again, ranging b/w 17-30 minutes per mile... yea...

Apple Orchard Trail: Pics from my training run not the race. BTW- we apparently climbed 167 of those stairs...

It was a slow trek up… I got sick again and was light-headed so when I finally made it to the waterfall I took a seat to "enjoy it" for a minute before battling the final mile to the top (Reality: I didn't care about the waterfall at this point). Shortly before that a girl had passed and asked: “are you ok? Are you the dietitian girl?” I reluctantly said yea and admitted I was having major GI issues, at which point I just felt really embarrassed. I have to say, I was truly impressed with how kind and concerned the other runners around me were. Another mile  later (mile 29) and I was finally back at Sunset Field ... all that remained was 4-5 miles of downhill. Easy right? It was nice to be moving again yet so sad to feel like you’re sprinting downhill while only managing 10 min pace! About half a mile from the finish Jordan was there faithfully waiting and taking pictures per usual. I informed him that he was to run with me to the finish (after rocking a top ten finish of his own and in his flip flops… yea, he’s awesome). Crossing the finish line was fun, certainly a huge accomplishment but more so after everything a huge relief...

Gorgeous pic courtesy of J. Chang.

In conclusion—My race certainly didn’t go according to plan and with that was a disappointment, especially since I still don’t know what made me so sick. Pushing through physical fatigue is challenging, but I’ll admit physical illness/GI issues is the one thing capable of knocking me to my knees. Only managing to consume maybe 500-600 calories in a 7 hour span certainly doesn’t make for productive or fun running, and it’s tough looking back on the results knowing I was fully capable of a much better placing. That being said, two years ago I would have scoffed at the thought of running 34 miles including 8,000+ feet of elevation gain… for me to START and FINISH this race is a huge accomplishment, regardless of what happened in between. I am proud of that and will most certainly be back again soon in pursuit of a much better performance... =D

Post-race : After grabbing some food to go, we quickly packed up and headed off to Richmond for a friend's wedding. The curvy and hilly roads only added to my nausea (it stuck around until the next morning) but we managed to make it in time... a long day but totally worth it! Congrats Ben & Ashley!

No Regrets: Jordan's Promise Land 50k Race Report

“No Regrets” Race 3 of 6 in the BEAST series

Since leaving the mountains of Bedford with a bitter taste in my mouth after Terrapin Mtn 50k a few weeks ago, I have thought a lot about what I would do differently for Promise Land 50k. On one hand, why would I need to change anything? Everyone has bad races and sometimes its better to try it again without any drastic changes. On the other hand, something just didn’t feel right about the way my race went last time out in the mountains and I wanted to get it right this time.  As I was gearing up for PL, I began thinking in earnest about my race strategy and kept coming back to the same thought, “I need to go out harder.” This type of race plan is not a typical ‘ultra-runner’ strategy, which usually revolves around strong, steady running, but long story short, I decided that I would really push the envelope at this race, run without trepidation and have a blast in the process.  I was not going to be conservative, but rather go out hard, be aggressive with the pace and see where that would take me.  I knew beforehand that this type of race strategy was either going to work out great, or blow up in my face, but no matter what it would hurt…a lot. No regrets right?

Friday Kristen and I made out way to the campground and got all set to go, pitching our tent next to our VT Ultra teammates. The evening was pretty uneventful and it was once again great to see so many familiar faces, from Winchester, Blacksburg, Baltimore and the numerous other places where we have lived and run. Off to bed we went and I was out in no time.

Night before the race.

4AM rolled around and we woke up, got changed and hung out with fellow runners before the start. 5:30 hit and after a few words from Horton (ok more than a few words per usual) we were off and running into the darkness. I had told several of my teammates of my race plan, so they were not surprised when I took off with the lead group up the mountain. I ran with the lead 5 up most of the first climb but then they started pulling away from me over the last ½- ¼ mile before turning into the woods for more climbing.  At that point I was worried that my plan to stay with the top pack was already doomed, less than 2 miles in. Once we turned off the road and into the forest, I was on my own and would only catch glimpses of Frank G, Sam D, Jordan W and the other top guys on occasion. When I got to the top of the climb and started down the big grassy trail/service road, I began to catch up to them. After about 1.5 miles I caught most of the top group, minus Shaun Pope who was way out front by now.  I decided then to really start cranking up the pace. I wanted to stay moderately uncomfortable so I would not settle into a pace that would just get me into trouble later on when I knew I would be feeling terrible no matter what I did early on in the race. Either way, I was trucking with Sam, Frank and Jordan most of the way towards Aid Station 2 in places 2-5. Along the way Brian, another of the top group took a hard tumble and I stopped to see if he was alright. After a few seconds he was able to continue and eventually caught back up to us no problem (he ended up with either bruised or cracked ribs from his fall… ouch). 

Cool view of the course courtesy of Keith Knipling

I was relieved when we got to the part of the course where you do a small out and back to aid station 2 because I was nearly out of water, but when we started down the service road, something didn’t feel right and it ended up that AS 2 was not set-up yet. We quickly yelled for Shaun to turn around and our group headed back up the mountain. We didn’t lose too much time there, but ended up grouping back up into a big pack of runners 1-5 with Shaun still working to catch up. I was a little worried about my hydration at this point because there was no more water until the next stop at Sunset Field, but then I remembered that during a training run on the course 2 weeks ago, Chris Bernard had stopped at a spring on the White Oak loop to fill up a bottle. I was determined to find that spring and fill up. That didn’t turn out to be a hard task, and in no time, I was back in business with a full hand bottle. By the time I got to the highest point on the course at the Blue Ridge Parkway, the group had strung out again with Shaun right in front of me and the rest of the top 5 out of sight. I knew that from here on out I would most likely be running solo for a while.

Trilliums in full bloom were all over the course.
http://www.fs.fed.us/wildflowers/regions/southern/AppleOrchardFalls/images/Large-flowered_Trillium_lg.jpg

I arrived at Sunset Field solidly in 6^th place with no one in sight other than Shaun right ahead of me. I was excited for the next several miles of glorious downhill to stretch my legs out and let gravity do some of the work. The run down the mountain was beautiful with all the trees leafing out, the trillium blooming and the creek rushing next to me. Though I am a very social person, I really enjoyed the solitude of this section. I was really able to take in the beauty of the course and not worry about anything for a while. I quickly filled up and got a little nutrition at the Cornelius Creek AS and then continued on down the mountain to the lowest point on the course where you turn onto the White Tail trail.  Once again, I was still completely alone, which was very helpful in staying relaxed and focused. I kept telling myself, “just stay strong until Apple Orchard Falls then bring it home from there.” I kept a pretty good pace through this section and arrived at the Colon Hollow AS sooner than I had anticipated. I knew that this section before hitting Cornelius Creek again was going to be one of the tougher parts because it was long, rolling and all looked the same.

http://www.cnyhiking.com/BRP-CorneliusCreekTrail001.jpg

Not gonna lie, this section was not very fun. I surprised myself and was holding it together much better than I had imagined, given the fast start, but the rolling, wide grassy trail was getting old…fast. I did see a couple turkey hunters out there which was fun (then proceeded to flush a turkey out of a roost in a tree some 100 meters later….hope it’s ok .)  On the descent back to Cornelius creek I was caught very quickly by Brad Hinton and Jack Kurisky, which pushed me back to 8^th. I was surprised that it had taken so long for anyone to catch me so I was not terribly discouraged at this point. I knew that all I had left was the brutal climb of Apple Orchard Falls then the long descent back to the finish.

Apple Orchard Falls
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-TLHhbF21QxE/Tb8xlvLf-qI/AAAAAAAAC0E/IY67E9YQ6GY/s1600/047+apple+orchard+falls.jpg

After being able to keep running through most of the lower section of the Apple Orchard Falls Trail, my pace grounded to a near halt as I reached the part of the climb where you have to rock scramble for awhile then hit the stairs. I kept my pace moving but undoubtedly it was slowing dramatically. Once I cleared the falls, I heard someone behind me say, “Is that a Hokie?” and saw my buddy Rudy running up behind me. He blew by me and was running like he just started the race. Shortly after he passed me I was caught by Mario Raymond and decided then that if I had any shot at a top 10 finish, I HAD to try and stick with him. So that’s what I did. When Mario ran, I ran, and when he walked, I walked. That strategy worked well and got me back to Sunset Fields in good shape.  At the top we both caught back up with Brad which put me back into 9th place

Photo courtesy of Beth Minnick

           I wanted to tell myself that at this point I was a lock for 9^th place with only a couple miles of screaming downhill to go, but I knew that there were many, many fast people coming down the mountain as fast, if not much faster than me. With all the training that I do with the VT Ultra guys, I know that my training buddies can descend really, really quick. I did not want to take any chance with that and kept the throttle on all the way back down to the gravel road. At this point I saw that Mario was gapping me a little bit but there was not much I could do but focus on my own race and try to finish strong.  When I saw the squirrel shaped mailbox I knew I was nearly there and that’s when I finally let myself enjoy the fact that I was about to place top ten for the first time at Promise Land! I crossed the finish line in 5:17:37 which was a 25 minute PR.  No Regrets.

            What a great race it was for me. My race strategy, though not very sexy, worked perfectly for me.  I nabbed a top 10 finish here for the first time, and had a blast running through the beautiful mountains. Even better, VT Ultra absolutely KILLED it with 5 Hokies finishing in the top 15 and 3 in the top 10. It is so amazing having a great group of young folks to train with here and the hard work is definitely showing. Like we now say, “There is definitely something in the water here in Blacksburg.”  Unfortunately, Kristen did not have the best time out there and had GI issues throughout the race. But as a testament to her toughness, she finished the race with a smile on her face. It’s such a blessing to be able to share these moments with Kristen, my beautiful wife, best friend and training partner, even if the results aren’t always what we want.

HOKIES in the top 15... Steve, Me, Darren, Rudy & Guy (L to R).

             Now for a little break from the LUS/Beast series until Grindstone 100 in October, but that does not mean we aren’t going to be doing any fun ultras over the summer! Stay tuned :-D

Fun Fact: We are 1/2 of the way through the BEAST series race-wise but only 1/3 of the way mileage wise. We have many, many more miles to go....and I'm ok with that

Finally got myself a top 10 pack!

Enjoying the Ride

To say that I am not disappointed with my race at Terrapin Mountain 50k would not really be the truth. I was hoping to continue my positive momentum from Holiday Lake and live up to my pre-race seeding of 7^th. I have had some great training since Holiday Lake, but I also had been pretty sick for a couple weeks. Either way, heading into this race, I was feeling confident, excited and ready to roll.

The past week leading up to the race, work had been a little higher stress than normal, due to some changes that are going to be occurring in the near future, but otherwise uneventful. 

Friday, Kristen and I headed up to the Sedalia Center right after work. The drive was beautiful and seeing the mountains really got me excited to run the next morning. We arrived at the center, set up our tent and spent some time hanging out with fellow runners before heading off to get a long nights rest.

Our alarms woke us up promptly at 5am for the 7am start. We did our usual pre-race routine and unlike at Holiday Lake, we were BOTH ready to go at race time.

As we headed down the road towards the first big climb, I ran with Kristen and a friend from PT school. We chatted for a bit about our expectations for the race and what to look forward to on this course.

Slowly, I eased my way up to run with a couple of guys who I knew would be in the hunt for a top ten finish. We climbed together for the first several miles and came out at Camping Gap in 12^th and 13^th. As we headed down the long descent, I was passed by one or two runners, but I tried to heed the warning of some fellow runners to not blow my quads out on this early, long descent. I maintained a controlled pace down to the bottom and started the long climb back to Camping Gap. About ¾ of the way up, I started to get really cold. This is something that has started happening to me recently and for the life of me cannot explain why. Possibly from slowing down while climbing, I started getting really cold and began to feel pretty miserable. By the time I got to Camping Gap again, I just filled up and headed out, not much conversation or banter.

Let’s just say that the next section of the course was pretty ugly. On the White Oak Trail, the wheels started falling off for me. I lost sight of the guys I had been running with the whole race up until then, and people started picking me off, starting with the lead female, who looked like she was effortlessly prancing through the woods…haha. Either way, this section should not have been as hard as it felt and I should not have been slowing down as much as I was. It was encouraging to see lots of folks when the loop reconnected with the main trail, and at that point I really started getting passed by tons of people. This made me realize how much I had really slowed down over the last several miles. By the time I had reached Camping Gap for the third time, I had been caught by several of my teammates who were having very impressive races, including freshman Darren and Guy L. who had just rocked a top 10 finish at the Georgia Death race the weekend before. I was really excited about seeing my teammates but at the same time it was frustrating because I could not for the life of me keep up with either of them. I had no ‘pop’ in my legs and was only able to trudge along at my miserable pace. I kept thinking to myself, “It’s ONLY a 50k, this should not be this hard.” I guess this shows that no matter how many ultras you have done, each one is a unique, difficult challenge.

I truly enjoyed the section after climbing up and over Terrapin Mtn. It was turning into a beautiful afternoon and the view from the summit was awesome…even though I was trying hard not to fall off the cliff while punching my bib and getting buffeted by some big gusts. The ”Fat Man’s Misery” was quite an experience.  I loved the unique nature of clamoring through this narrow section! This section was the first time that I was actually able to enjoy the race…probably because I had the pressure off my back to get a top 10 finish and I could just run, enjoy the people, revel in the beauty of the mountains and reflect a little.

The downhill to the last AS was long, steep and one of the tougher downhill sections I have ever done.  My legs at this point were still feeling pretty bad, but I was able to run a pretty good clip. I lost my balance a few times and nearly took some ugly spills, but that’s trail running for you. At the last aid station I saw one of my friends from tech and she gave my some good encouragement. This was one point where knowing the course better would have helped. I was not 100% sure how much longer I had and that made for a very long last stretch. While I did not feel terrible during this section, I also didn’t really have the drive to bring it home strong.  I was kind of in auto-pilot mode and just kept running, though not overly fast.

Coming down the last hill, I saw Horton sitting off in the woods and he yelled to me, “CHANG…. I am PRETTY sure your wife is going to catch you.” Haha….great.  Anyways, kicked it on home with a 6:10 final mile for a total time of 5:07 or something like that. About an hour slower than Holiday Lake…oops.

Not sure why this race didn’t quite go as planned but sometimes its not about painstakingly figuring out what went wrong and more about picking yourself back up, enjoying the ride and barreling onward…and that’s what’s going to happen. On to Promise Land!

-J. Chang

Terrapin Mountain: Kristen's Report

In the two weeks leading up to this race, I was feeling pretty horrible. Life + training had caught up to me and wiped me out. I hit a wall and each day all I wanted to do was sleep. My runs were a struggle much more so than usual – I was short of breath and my pace much slower. Needless to say, I was not feeling too confident about running 31 miles including 7,500ft of elevation gain, much more than I’ve ever run or trained on. The good news is, I went into this race very well rested. My fatigue caused me to taper much more than normal, probably a blessing in disguise. Regardless, I opted to run this one “for fun”- to not worry about my pace or placement and enjoy the course and views (which I had heard were stellar).

We arrived Friday night and picked up our packet, pitched a tent, chatted for a while before hitting the sack early. Thanks to daylight savings, it was really nice to arrive and do all this with the sun still shining. We were in bed by 8:30 as all I really wanted to do was sleep! I joked to Jordan that the next day I would just sleep while he ran and see him at the finish .

I'll take a sweet mug like this over an extra t-shirt any day!

Our numbers: I was seeded 5th for women and Jordan 7th for men
(5 & 7 happen to be my lucky numbers!)

Race morning we were up by 5AM. I slept well and it made a HUGE difference getting a full 8 hours. At least I was much less grumpy than normal, ha! We did the normal pre-race stuff and I hit the bathroom 3 times (yea, nerves will do that to you). The nice thing about the girls room and ultras is there’s rarely a line!

Obligatory pre-race coffee sitting in our tent.

10 minutes before the race and I was still deciding what to wear (typical). I debated on a long-sleeve shirt but opted for a tank top with arm warmers and shorts. It worked perfect too so I’m happy with the choice.

To start the race the director hit a “gong” which I thought was pretty unique. We were off and I ran with Jordan for the first ½ mile before he took off ahead. Both the ½ marathon and 50k runners started together so there was really no point in trying to figure out positioning. I just focused on taking it out EASY. We started the first climb a mile in and I ran it based on feel. Per usual my calves cramped up pretty badly but it didn’t seem to affect my pace.  I walked at times but tried to keep moving, if anything shuffling up the mountain. At about half way up the mtn David Horton was sitting on a rock at yelled at me “loooooookin pretty Chaaaaaaang.” Thanks, lol.

Beautiful mountains.

After making a “lollipop” loop we popped back out on the gravel road I flew down earlier (~12 miles into the race). At that point a race volunteer told me I was in 3^rd! This really took me by surprise because someone previously said there were 4-5 girls ahead of me and I wasn’t really pushing the pace.  I sort of shrugged it off though, because it was still very early in the race and after all, I do have a history of going out too fast. The climb back to the top of the mountain was about 3.5 miles and for someone who used avoid hills at all cost, I feel like I took it in stride. I chatted with one of the guys who was also kind enough to remind me “it’s ok to walk some, you know.”  About halfway up I moved into the 2^nd place position and that motivated me to kept moving forward. At the top I was feeling pretty good about the race – I was halfway and well ahead of my goal time yet still feeling very relaxed. Rudy of VT Ultra was kind enough to refill my camelback and I was on my way.

Next was another 6 mile lollipop loop. Rudy said “you’ll climb to the top of the mountain and then fly back down.” The peak was mile 21 and while I was still feeling strong, I could definitely feel the starting effects of a bonk. I quickly pushed the calories and felt better.

Elevation profile according to my personal Garmin.

I passed Camping Gap once again (main aid station you hit 3 times total), and then immediately we started up a very steep incline of about ¾ mile to climb the actual Terrapin Mountain. I knew it was coming but it definitely was much worse than I expected! At this point in the race it REALLY hurt. At points like these I now have a better understanding of why ultra running has a huge mental component. Nonetheless, I kept pressing forward and at the top was a quick out and back of maybe 100 yrds where we went to the cliff overhanging and punched our bibs. Nice view and all but to be honest I was terrified (of the heights) and thanks a ton to the runner who kindly punched my bib for me. Next was a long, technical downhill. My quads were still feeling great but the decline was steep and rocky which was pretty tough even for a downhill lovin’ chica like me. The most interesting point of the race, called “fat man’s misery,” was during this section (around mile 23-24). It featured a very narrow and downhill passage way wedged between two rocks. It was pretty much an “are you KIDDING ME?” type moment.

Here's a pic of "Fat Man's Misery" borrowed from here.

6 miles to go and I knew at least a few of them were downhill. I was feeling great until we hit a short uphill of about ¼ mile. Enough to wipe me out and I’m certain I was running low on calories. I finished off two half-eaten gels but in retrospect should have eaten more. It wasn’t until about 2.5 miles to go that the next two girls passed me. I tried to respond and run with them but my legs no longer had that “oomph.” I flew down the final downhill in their pursuit, but then again I’m certain they did as well.

That's the mountain we ran up/down in the background.

Almost done... MUST. KEEP. RUNNING!

The last mile was pretty excruciating! My legs were certainly done for, but finally I turned the final corner and received a very enthusiastic greeting by the crowd. It was so wonderful to take that final step and very rewarding knowing I had run a strong and smart race. My second half was less than 5 minutes slower than the first (whereas at Holiday Lake it was a full 40 minutes slower). And regardless of my finish time and place (4^th female, 5:22), I accomplished my main goals of “running happy” and enjoying the experience.

Post-race with the hubby.

And of course, David Horton.

Thanks to Clark Zealand (race director), David Horton (always a pleasure), the VT Ultra Team (which produced a lot of stellar performances!) and especially to my wonderful hubby!! He continued to encourage me while dealing with my crabbiness for 2 weeks leading up to this race (and definitely deserves some sort of award for doing so).

Lessons learned:

• PACING: It’s so important to take it out easy (especially with an uphill start) to preserve carbohydrate stores as much as possible. Bonking is not fun and I’m glad I didn’t have to face it again at this race. 
• NUTRITION: My camelback worked out so much better than the hand bottle I normally use. My hands were freed up and I definitely drank a lot more, while more easily carrying and accessing my fuel. I still need to learn to eat more later in the race. I tend to forget more when fatigue set or as I approach the finish line think "I've eaten enough to get by." Also: a little bit of Tums and Advil are wonderful!
• ATTITUDE: This race shows once again that I race MUCH better when I take the “just for fun" attitude and don’t stress. I tend to run smarter and I can’t imagine how much more energy I burn worrying about pace or placement. 
• I CAN run up mountains and it CAN be fun! (I need to keep reminding myself of this)
• I can be a perfectionist yet I know "perfect" races are very hard to come by. At the end of the day it’s easy for me to say “I could have done this better or run a little faster” but I'm reminding myself of the importance of being happy with the outcome as is and not over thinking it (except in instances when really did not run smart like I did at Holiday Lake).

Blacksburg Classic 10 Mile

Photo courtesy of Aaron B.

One week post- 50k and after a long work week, we weren't sure how this race would go. I was feeling sick with a head cold and Kristen was just plain tired from working. Nonetheless, we were super stoked as the Classic is considered (at least to us) to be one of Blacksburg's premier running events.

After a lazy morning of breakfast with friends, coffee and hanging out, we slowly gathered ourselves together and got out the door. We opted to run to the race site which was about 2 miles from our home and it worked out perfectly as a solid warm-up and cool-down. We made sure to layer up well though because it felt freezing outside! There were flurries falling with a forecast of snow.

Upon arrival, the hosting elementary school was chaos. We jumped in line for the bathrooms and prepared to start, chatting it up with friends along the way. Kristen said she thought the start was a little anti-clamatic: here were are wearing fancy race bibs with internal chips and the race director is yelling "set... go!" Ha.  Anyways, we were off!

Kristen's Race

While I won't go into a ton of detail about the race itself, I will say it was a great day for me! I dropped 20 seconds from my previous PR set at Cherry Blossom (April '12) to finish in 1:10:35 with a 1st place age group placing. My strategy was to have a conservative first half and let myself go from there and it worked out perfectly. I have to say, the girls competition this year was pretty stacked! Normally my time would be good for a top 3 performance but I think I only managed 6th or 7th this year. I had really hoped to get the sub-70 as my Garmin told me I was averaging sub-7 pace, but now I know to rely more on the actual race mile markers than my own watch :) Next time! Regardless, this course is more challenging than Cherry Blossom was with a lot of rolling hills, even more so with the final miles being more uphill. I felt much stronger on them than I have in the past and especially late in the race. To me, that's more important than a finishing time.

http://blacksburgroadracing.shutterfly.com/8885

Jordan's Race:

When the race started, I had a cough drop in my mouth and one more ready to take. Someone commented, "Something smells fruity!" I guess I was busted...haha. Anyways, the race got off to its usual quick pace due to having the first 3 miles in conjunction with the 5k race. I love this kind of race because it keeps the race from getting too thinned out until after mile 3. This gave me a chance to get into a good rythme and not worry about who was leading at the time. When we got to the split for the 5k/10miler, I got to see that I was sitting solidly in 3rd, about 75 meters behind first an about 25 meters behind 2nd. This was another perfect scenario for me because I knew I could keep them in my sights for the rest of the race and key off them.

By the turnaround after mile 7, I was really feeling my cold....my body was achey, my head wanted to explode and I had the world's worst GUSHING nose... snot rockets would not suffice. I was sitting 20 meters behind second and was getting discouraged because every time I surged to try and catch him, I would get within 5-10 meters of him then he would pull away again. On the way back in, I got so much encouragement from all the other runners, which gave me a boost of energy to keep trying to catch #2. I love the running community here and how its such a close knit group of folks of all abilities and ages. The last several miles are a mix of gentle to not-so-gentle hills and I slowly began reeling the second place guy in. By the last 1/2 mile I was within striking distance and I tried one last time to get him....and failed again....ugh. I settled in about 10 meteres back of him on the last hill to the finish kicking myself for letting him get away from me. However, when we crested the hill and started on last 100 meters of flat/downhill, something from my high school track days came back and I started kicking. I found a new gear which I hadn't used in probably several years and made up ground fast. When I caught #2 with about 35 meters to go, he did not respond and I was able to take 2nd. Ugh...that hurt, but it was so rewarding to earn a 2nd place like that, not just settling for the 'easy' 3rd. I am glad to know I still have some of that competitive edge and kick to go along with it. I am also happy to get the 60 minute monkey off my back, which had been hanging around for way to long. During the last several 10 milers that I have attempted, my sub 60 minute attempts have been thwarted by getting lost, terrible weather, etc....now I can check that off my list and work on continuing to get faster :-D

http://blacksburgroadracing.shutterfly.com/8885

Thanks to everyone along the way that was cheering, including Guy, Wyatt, and Bradner! It's wonderful having passed by so many familiar faces!!

Climbing uphill with approximately 1 mile to go. This hill is now familiar territory for us!

Thanks Wyatt L for the pics!

Post-race we chatted it up with friends and locals, met a few new people and enjoyed some food. Though we were absolutely cold and tired, we were in no rush to get home because we were enjoying our "reunion" with friends! The Blacksburg community is such a friendly and welcoming one and we are loving that we can now call it HOME!!! We've run into a few people lately who have asked "how long will you be here?" not knowing if our time is temporary or long-term. As far as we're concerned, we're here to stay!! Woot!

Post-race hangout: Kristen with Heather F. and Cortney M.

Race goodies

Post-race we enjoyed a late afternoon nap followed by more delicious food and a puppy play-date with friends...Pretty much our idea of a perfect Saturday :-D

Holiday Lake 50k

Overall, it was a great day for the Changs and a solid start to our busy race schedule this year. We both placed in the top 10 despite a competitive field and, though neither of us PR’d, we ran solid races. Jordan tied for 7^th place with a time of 4:09 And Kristen placed 8^th (female) with a time of 4:47. The Hokies had a strong showing too! 

Jordan’s Race:

Coming into this race, I was really excited about my training because I have had the opportunity over the last several months to get in some really quality long runs on a consistent basis due to being back in Blacksburg, where you can go in any direction and run for hours. Though my overall weekly mileage has not been stellar due to my poor excuses of long hours at work, I was excited to see how my new infusion of long runs would help my race a Holiday Lake 2013!

Holiday Lake was my first ever ultra which I did when I was 18 and a freshman at VT. Since then I have expanded to many other races and distances, but HL still holds a special place for me and I have many fond (and not so fond) memories of this race.

This year we arrived late-ish on Friday night and got to spend some good time with the VT Ultra folks and several other friends that we have met during our travels. Notably we got the chance to catch up with our running buddies from Winchester where I went to grad school. After the meeting and chatting with folks, Kristen and I headed off to the Panda Express 2.0 to car camp for the night.

The morning of the race, we woke up promptly at 5am and began our morning routine. We had plenty of time to get all our things together, eat breakfast and relax before the 6:30 start. Props to my wife for deciding to bring our french press coffee maker so we had some good brew rather than waiting in line for coffee. By 6:25 I was out at the starting line and we were singing the national anthem. Kristen, however, was nowhere to be found. After the national anthem, I found her by the drop bags, struggling with some final adjustments. Horton yelled “30 seconds!!!” and we were still not at the starting line. With about 10 seconds to go we scrambled over to the start and got settled in for the race.

Horton yelled “Go!” and off we were into the dark morning. Immediately a pack of 12-15 guys and gals formed at the front on the climb out of the 4H camp. I tucked in about 30 feet back, not wanting to get caught in the crowd when it came to turn right onto the single-track section. I ran behind this group for another ½ mile or so and then slowly started moving up. I ran for a couple minutes with Holly Bugin who ended up winning the women’s race and setting a new course record. As we ran up, down and around on the first section of the course, it became clear that no one from the front pack was taking the lead. The lead group included the likes of #1 seeded Frank the Tank , the #3 and #4 seeded runners as well as a couple younger runners. Normally by this point, 2-3 runners would have bolted off the front and left the rest of the top 10 in their wake. This year, however, no one was pushing the pace and a big group entered AS 1 together. At this point I was still hanging between 50 and 100ft  back and spent some good time running with Matt Bugin, Holly’s husband. We discussed how we thought the race would play out with the big group of leaders up front, and no front-runner taking charge. Between AS 1 and 2, we picked off a couple people who started falling off the back and we found ourselves in 9^th and 10^th place. 

At AS 2, Matt stopped for fluids and I kept trucking. I passed another 2 runners between AS 2 and 3. This section was really beautiful this year because it was turning into a clear, sunny morning and we were running straight into it, making it possible to only see the silhouettes of the other runners. This gave me a real peaceful, quiet feeling and I really enjoyed this section, which is mostly on flat fire roads through evergreen trees. Coming down into AS 3, I found myself behind the 6^th place male at the time and decided to hang with him for awhile rather than pushing the pace too much during this first loop, which has been my downfall in the last couple years of running this race. I followed him for the rest of the first loop and we caught another one of the early leaders, who had eventually broken away from the pack.

By the turnaround I was solidly in 7^th and had the chance to scope out everyone else as we turned back to begin our second (counter-clockwise) loop. Matt Bugin was the next person behind me, probably about a minute back. I got to see Kristen, who was rocking out in 3rd place at this point. During this section I also got to see the rest of the VT Ultra crew rocking out! I always enjoy this section because I receive a lot of encouragement from other runners as well as get the opportunity to give out encouragement to other people. It’s great to see runners of ALL abilities out there tacking this 50k. I don’t care who you are, or how much ultra-running experience you have…running a 50k is tough, no matter what. I respect anyone who gives an Ultra a shot and I love Holiday Lake because it’s the one race where I get to see and talk to EVERYONE who is running the course.

On the way back, the runner in front of me tripped and went down hard. I stopped to see if he was ok and he waved me on, saying he was ok. So then I was in 6^th. I ran all by my lonesome in 6^th for the next hour or so, which is a situation that I both love and hate. I enjoy the solitude of running on my own, but knowing someone is right behind you can be very stressful as well. Eventually the runner who had fallen got his composure back and charged past me a little before AS 6. At this AS I was feeling pretty crummy, but Horton was there talking with his bullhorn right into my face about how I was in 6^th place and needed to move up one spot to fulfill my seeding of 5^th….haha. That got me in and out of that AS pretty quick. I knew that the section between AS 5 and 6 was mostly gentle uphill and that AS 6-7 was much easier in terms of climbing. This got me going pretty good for a while but eventually I started feeling bad again. I would go through bouts of feeling super good and super bad, but the positive side was that I don’t think my pace shifted very much either way. I was really focused on maintaining a good running pace and this is where I think my consistent long runs really helped me.  I was able to maintain a decent pace, even though fatigue, soreness and pain was really setting in.

By the time I reached the last AS, I was REALLY starting to feel it but I was determined not to let the wheels fall off in the last 4 miles, which is par for the course for me. I usually get to the last AS and then hang on for dear life, hoping no one passed me. This year turned out much differently. As I stopped to fill up my bottle for the last time and get a little salty food in me, Matt popped into the AS right behind me. As I left, he caught me and I was sure he was just going to go on to crush me to the end. Instead, he ran up next to me and said, “Finally, someone to run with!” This is what I LOVE about ultra-running. Even though we were racing each other and we both shooting for a top ten finish, there is so much camaraderie in this sport. Those words really lifted me up and I got a second wind. We ran together for the rest of the last section, throwing down a pace that I had NEVER run before for the last 4 miles. This was the first time I had ever felt strong finishing up this race.

As we climbed up towards to road finish, I was feeling really good and ran all the climbs, which was also a first. I am usually ‘hands-on-knees’ death-walking at this point, but the encouragement of having someone with me (not blowing past me) kept me going strong. As we popped out on the road for the last ¾ mile, Matt and I reminisced on what a great morning it had been, knowing that were set on finishing together tied for 7^th (my highest placing ever.) We crossed the finish line in a little over 4:09, good enough for my 4^th top ten placing at HL out of 5 outings.

Today, looking back at the race, I am super happy with my overall preparation, performance and execution. My nutrition and hydration were spot on and I had no major GI or other issues.  This race probably could not have gone much better for me and on top of it all, I had a blast being out there with my wife, friends and fellow ultra-marathoners!

Kristen's Race:

Also read about Kristen's lessons learned on trail on her other blog: Real Food For Fuel

After a long day of prep, packing and driving, we arrived at Holiday Lake around 7pm on Friday night. We signed in and joined for the latter part of dinner, the part where Horton talks and rambles for a very long time about anything and everything he can think of regarding the race. But it’s ok, because he does make it entertaining and give away some pretty sweet door prizes. Afterwards we hung with the Hokies for a while, chatted with friends we haven’t seen in a while and then headed off to bed.

Race morning: Wake up call was 5am and we quickly scrambled up to the lodge before it became too crazy. I’m super glad I brought my French press for coffee because there was definitely a shortage otherwise. However, there was plenty of hot water!! Anyways, we ate breakfast, got changed and piddled around otherwise getting ready. Being the obscenely slow person that I am, an hour and a half later I was still scrambling at the finish line getting set. Thanks to my hubby for helping me out last minute!

Horton yelled “go” and we were off. I took off pretty quickly up the hill because I knew what was coming next., and a single track trail, pitch dark and a crowd don’t mix well for me. I was very happy with my positioning for the first four miles, but had a feeling I might pay for it later. By aid station 1, it was light out and I ditched my mini flashlight. I was starting to feel good and knew I was somewhere around 2-3^rd female.  I knew I was making swift time, but it was conversational pace and I felt fine… no problem right? I didn’t start to worry until the first ranked female passed me (I thought she was ahead already) and I caught a few other faster Hokies. A smart runner would have acknowledged this and backed off. This stubborn runner did not. In the back of my mind, I wanted to keep with a crowd so as to avoid no-man’s land (like last year). I kept going.

2^nd aid station came up and two females stopped. I took this as an opportunity to make up some time and blew past it. Maybe a mistake, but perhaps not since I was “self-sufficient” with my fueling plan.  I continued to feel strong through the next aid station, where I refilled my hand bottle and prepared for the next section of single track to finish out the 1^st loop. At this point, I started to throttle back a bit knowing I was in good enough position for the first lap.  I started to cramp some due to my lack of bowel movement before the race, but pushed it to the back of my mind as long as possible (let’s just say there are few areas of discretion along this course!) I passed Jordan and he confirmed I was in 3^rd place and that the top two were not too far ahead, then a few minutes later I found myself at the turn-around point. This is where things began to unravel…

First, I struggled to get my fuel pack on (holding my lap 2 supplies). Then in frustration I took off without my smaller hand bottle and electrolyte tabs (I did have extra). The next four miles were fun because you pass all the incoming runners and this is always encouraging (more so being towards the front). I continued to run a steady pace without issue. Around mile 20 though my cramping returned and I was forced to take a pit-stop. Not fun, especially when I realized I left my gels/electrolytes on the ground. Between aid station 3 and 2 I began to fade, but still running strong.  However, I arrived at the 2^nd to last station in rough shape. I desperately grabbed some salty foods off the table,  and I should have filled up with Gatorade instead of the water I was drinking. With such a cold start to the race, I definitely under estimated the warmth of the later stages and my need for water and electrolytes. I fell into 4^th around mile 25, and a few miles later fell into 5^th.  My shoe came untied and I didn’t care. Despite countless reminders from passing runners, I ignored it for about two miles before finding someone to tie it. Similar to last year, it took seemingly forever to reach the last aid station, where I received a lot of encouragement and in return mumbled something along the line of being miserable. On the positive side, I was still moving and not walking…

 The last few miles were a blur… I was counting them down and trying to stay moving and stay positive. At a few points, I felt like I had come to a stand still and just wanted to lay down and quite. I didn’t really care what the result was, I just wanted to be done. I kept looking back to see if anyone was coming. Somehow, I never saw anyone behind me yet a few minutes later I would inevitably be passed. With 1 mile to go a friend, Rob, passed me and encouraged me to keep up for a strong finish. I tried my best, and thank you Rob for being so insistent! I needed that! I finally hit the road, where Jordan was waiting with the camera. He ran with me to the end… such a great husband! After I finished, Horton looked at me and said “Youuuuuu died!” Yes, indeed I did. Lesson learned, the real race does not begin until the 2^nd lap and the first is merely a warm-up. Hopefully next year I will remember that :)

The VT Ultra team also KILLED it and carried on the tradition of Hokie Domination at Holiday Lake. Congrats to all the runners for all the toughness, excitement and endurance you guys showed out there. Thanks to all the volunteers and Dr. Horton for once again putting on an awesome, challenging race! This was the perfect way to start off our long year of racing the LUS and Beast Series. We officially signed up for the series!!! Onto Terrapin Mountain 50k!