Run Toto Run

The dogs I am familiar with would have difficulty running this past weekend. At least my girlfriend's dogs prefer to play in the mud, not run in it! But it sure was fun… As I woke Saturday morning, the sky was cloudless, and the temperature was kind to those who entered the PsychoWyco 50 K. I was concerned about the weather not just because of the course conditions, but on Monday, I finally went to the doctor to check my 5-week-long head and chest issues, which were an ear infection, sinus infection, and bronchitis. After five days of antibiotics and two inhalers, I was breathing better, although I still questioned the strength in the lungs and not working out for five days.

We left the motel at 7:00AM and arrived at the park at about 7:30. Parking was full, so we parked along the access road entering the park. I set up my drop bag at the station and panicked. I left the inhaler at the Hotel. My girlfriend was running the 5K, so I decided not to tell her, or she would have returned to get it. (That is how she is… actually, this was her first trail race, and she was a bundle of nerves.) I thought if I had trouble, I would see her at the first split, and she could get it and bring it to me at one of the aid stations.

As the race was preparing to start, I ran into Les, Julie F., and Maria. Nice to see faces. That was the only time I saw them also. The race started in a nice open area that quickly came to a crowded corner as we hit the trails. It was about a mile into it when we were all spread out and able to run on a mostly single-track trail. According to Garmin, I was averaging a 14-minute mile and felt comfortable. There was some ice and a little mud. Based on the course description, I was surprised that several parts were runnable. 

About 7 miles into the race, I started to wheeze. I was concerned as I had a hard hack cough that came with it. I knew I would have to have my inhaler if I had any hope of getting through the day. I went through the first loop comfortably in about 2 hrs and 45 minutes. I noticed my girlfriend was not there and was not sure what happened. After 20 minutes, I decided to proceed, thinking I would just take it easy and hopefully finish. 

The second loop was a nightmare. The first 2 miles were alright, and then the mud became an issue. I hate to give it a simple name as mud, as this was more like slick, slimy clay. It was unavoidable. If you stepped onto an uneven slope, you would slide. I fell several times throughout that second loop. At one time, I was wheezing bad, and I decided to sit there, grabbed a bunch of mud, and formed it into a pot…  It was clay. Every time my foot went it, I would pray the shoes and foot came out with it as the suction was unbelievable. Now, it could be that a 245-pound guy also went deeper into the muck than others, but I found lifting my feet through the mud more difficult than running. As I continued to have difficulty breathing, I decided that at about 16 miles, I wouldn’t finish the 50 K. My cheat burned. The only way to control breathing was to assure I was not exerting myself as much as I had been. I enjoyed the mud, played in it a little, The second loop took me 3 hours and 40 minutes and I stopped at that time. They gave me a medal for finishing 20 miles, which, on this course, was, in my mind, an achievement. I did not see Les, Julie, or Maria for the rest of the day, but I am anxious to get their reports on the course and the day. As I said, I did two loops and quit. Each loop could not have been more opposite as the course changed from a challenging course without ice to mud to the ultimate test of trail running ability.