I came back for a second year in a row to try to run and finish the 50k Lake Hodges Ultramarathon….offically called the Lake Hodges Trail Fest by Elevation Culture. I DNF’ed last year and I was officially removed from the course this year at the 18.75 turnaround aid station because I was too slow. I took another DNF and I was DFL! I don’t have any excuses really. My feet were hurting like hell anyways.
Since I had done 14 miles on this course last year and came back to run multiple long sections of it during training, I was pretty confident the terrain on the course didn’t have many surprises for me…except that this year I was mentally prepared for the lack of shade…this year it was cooler too-
I started slow, trying to run my own race but even as one of the last runners, I was doing 14-15 minute miles for the first 8 miles, probably too fast for me and not running at a consistent pace. I also knew the course has lots of flat running, not really my thing but I was also better prepared to take on the flat spots.
I did drop bags for the two aid stations that took them, but only got to use the one drop bag…as I was removed from the course at the mid aid station. This is a nice course and very runnable for those who have the training and the legs to do it. I think the steep little hill in the middle of the course adds some spice to the day, making you really appreciate all the hill training you did, it reduced me to a hot mess as I worked to get up it and avoid all the bikes also using the hilly single track.
This is an out and back course, so you get the opportunity to cheer on everyone ahead of you who are also passing by you for the second time (if you are slow like me) and the certainty that you are really, really, slow gets hammered into you every time another runner passes you the other way. Even better is when a runner passing you the other way decides to motivate you by telling you to get motivated and turn on the power (except right then, coming up a rather steep section of the hill, I was doing all I could to keep walking). I was forced to walk most of the way down Raptor Ridge (the hill) because of a growing cramp in the right leg. For me, this was the wall/pain cave…cause I really didn’t do much more running as I set out to do the miles to the next aid station, which sits at 18.75 miles and is the big turnaround. This is my main complaint about this race….between the Raptor Aid Station at mile 11.5 and the San Pasqual Aid Station (turnaround) at 18.75….there could easily be another aid station. I know, we do 10k’s between aid stations as a badge of honor, but my cramp and lack of water said otherwise.
So I was basically walking from the downhill at Raptor Ridge to the San Pasqual Aid Station, which ate up time like crazy and put me behind the 1200 cutoff time at the aid station. As I limped in at a walk, the most humiliating thing was the fact they were taking down the aid station already. On the spot they informed me that I had blown the cutoff time by more than an hour and I was removed from the race.
Fortunately for me, my awesome wife had already shown up looking for me and carted my sorry ass off the field as the aid station continued to pack up. It was a bit sad, but not the end.
What I could improve on:
– Pace: I think my pacing was ok but I need longer time on feet.
– Endurance: This really means you have the ability to continue to run at a certain pace for a certain time. I was lacking endurance after 10 miles and I knew it. My training has to start getting longer and more time on feet. I need to get out for LONGER runs.
– Relaxing and enjoying myself: I had trouble with this one during this race and the stress affected me. I need to relax more on runs and find ways to enjoy it as I go.
What I think I did right:
– I made sure I got out on the course on different sections throughout the year so that the terrain didn’t surprise me. This worked well and helped my confidence, but I should have pushed to run longer sections.
– Nutrition: This time I remembered to eat on the hour…at least a Gu or a sugar waffle. I also emptied my water bottles and made sure to get salt tabs in me and drink my electrolyte.
I made it 18.75 miles, but I never quit! I can’t call myself an ultramarathoner yet as I’ve never officially finished one, but I’ll keep training until I do finish one.