Mountain Lakes 100 Round Two

15 miles south of Mt. Hood, about 160 runners attempted to run/walk/crawl 100 miles with a time cutoff of 30 hours. 81 finished. I was the 81st finisher at 29:47:44.

A Goal: Under 26 hours
B Goal: Under 30 hours (finisher)
C Goal: Finish 100 miles

Strategy
Keeping up my calories was an important strategy for the race. I had to eat for the second half. I decided to drink glukos (the on site sugar water drink), use the on site gu gels, my own few maple gels, apples, mandarins. I aimed to keep an easy 4 miles an hour pace...I would say that is about a 12 minute mile road pace for me (easy around 130 bpm heart rate).

Martha who placed third women at the Volcanic 50k greeted me at the start line. She was volunteering at the first aid station. After learning I was doing this race she said would remember my name. I wasn't expecting her to remember (she was a bit tipsy) but she did. She said it would be good to hear your name called out at the aid station.

Part I - The Winter Marathon - Miles 0 to 26 miles
Before the race started I found out that the first quarter of the race had snow. The first drop bag was right after this. Some people had a pair of shoes to switch out. I did bring an extra pair of shoes but kept them in my second drop bag at mile 55. The first three miles was the usual wide dirt road to separate the paces. Martha was at the aid station and it was nice to say hi to someone. I read the sign that said 97 miles to go and I remember not really being able to understand what that meant. As soon as the route turned to trail, the snow appeared and I started passing people fast. I got alarmed at the rate and decided to stick to a group at the middle of the pack. In addition to the snow the first 26 miles of the race is the most technical. Eventually I found the group too slow and soon followed some people that were passing by (it's hard to pass people on single track) and we formed another mid pack group. One runner I pasted called me sir making me feel old (I was the the 5th youngest person racing). I think people were just struggling with snow. I guess with the hot and dry summer in the PNE it was a new variable. I found it easier than running in mud. I eventually passed this group as well.

The snow gave out for a little bit at the half marathon mark and people then started passing me. It was hard to see that to be honest. I'm already running at a slow pace and seeing others pass you...but I had to keep reminding myself to run my own race. Then the snow returned but this time it was mostly icy water. The water burned. We passed up the first aid station again around at mile 23 where Martha was and it was good to hear my name (she was right). Then back to the dirt road to the start area. Around mile 24 I felt that I had to go to bathroom (#2). This was the first time I felt like this during any race. The feeling went away after a bit so I ignored it.

Part 2 - Shit Happens - Miles 26 to 55
Last year I DNF at mile 55, simply making it 55 was going to be a strong mental boost to me. A elderly lady helps grab food for me at the aid station. She really wanted me to sit down for a bit and eat but the chair is dangerous in my mind. I wanted to be in and out asap. At my drop bag I replaced some food and grabbed two apples. I held the apples in each hand and start running, slowly eating them. The trail turns to the PCT with rolling hills. Not technical and felt pretty easy. 3.6 miles to the next station I meet Moe who dressed as a butler in the 90 degrees Volcanic 50k and helped finishers get food and drinks. I also saw a woman from Rochester who I met the night before (I wore my Finger Lakes 50 finisher hoodie) so a bit of a NY connection. Moe grabbed my garbage (which included apple scraps) and I got refueled in liquids. At this point I started thinking of going to aid station to aid station, like how in mirror lake in lake placid my only thoughts were to go buoy to buoy. I don't think of the miles to come. Around mile 34 I had to go to bathroom. I knew there were no porter potties till mile 55. I held it in. It started hurting and the miles started feeling longer. I have done many trail races, hikes, backpacked, and camped a few times but I had never had to go outside behind some bushes (many backpacking sites have compost toilets). The pain became unbearable and at mile 38 I found a spot behind some bushes away from the trail. Felt a lot better afterwards but the problem didn't end there. I went another two times within 7 miles (I got more efficient each time) and once more at the porter potty at mile 55. I couldn't digest food. I started drinking ginger ale at the aid stations. I had no idea what was causing the problem so I continued to eat gu gels. At mile 37 a runner named Diana passed me. She was happy to find another runner after running alone for a while. I saw her again at mile 44 where I joined a group of runners. It was night now and it was nice to run with people. There was 4 of us, Peter, Diana, I and Franco. Franco was barely keeping up but he probably saw the value in running with people. The group ran a bit slow but it was still early in the race and decided to run with them till the next aid station. Peter who was leading had to go to bathroom and then Diana led. Lost Franco too. Diana ended up hitting a uphill too hard and needed a breather. I passed and all alone once again. Aid station 49 is special to me. Last year I reached here pretty late and the volunteer say you on the way back (we pass the aid station again at mile 75). She said the same thing this year too. Diana caught up at the aid station and we ran the next 5 miles together. We talked here and there but it was just nice being able to hear someone behind you. We reach the aid station at about 11 pm, 1.5 hours before the cutoff.

Part 3 - The long night- Miles 55 to 70
This leg of the race was a 15 mile loop and the first part where you are allowed pacers. Most people used pacers, some had two (one for the 15 mile loop and then one for the 30 miles back). The entire race is very crew friendly (race starts at 8 am, the first 26 miles is a loop back to the start so you could see your runner off, sleep for a few hours and then catch up with them in the way back before driving to mile 55, then it's another loop back to the aid station at 55/70 before the runners heads back to the start/finish). I went to the aid station captain hoping they had medicine for the stomach, I had stopped eating completely. After talking for a bit, we determined that I over dosed on gu gels. I went on a diet of vegetable broth with potatoes and ginger ale for the next 20 miles, eating whatever bits of fruit the aid station had. At this point energy wise I was fine but legs were pretty beat. Diana surged past me with her pacer. I try to keep up but I took a minute to grab hot shot, a shot drink with a lot of salt that is suppose to prevent/stop cramming. I quickly lost Diana but soon the woman from Rochester passes by. She was pacing another person and invited me to join the group. I follow them and my pace improves. We pass up a lot of people but I lost the Rochester team after the next aid station. Alone my pace fell and people pass me soon afterwards. I tried focusing on my breath to get into a mediation mode but wasn't able to (something to practice in the future). Near the second aid station of the loop I got slightly lost and followed another group of runner and pacer team to the aid station. That's one advantage of the pacer, following the trail markers for you. The last 5 miles of the loop I was alone and it was mentally tough. I soon realize that I'm physically alone at that moment but with all the support I have gotten to simply be there at that point, that I'm not really alone. I think of friends and family and use these emotions to stay strong. I focus on passing tree by tree. Make it to one tree, then to the next. Okay I'll take a break at that tree over there, okay maybe a few more. As I approach back to the main aid station at mile 70. I break into tears which quickly gets me dizzy. I reach the aid station at 3:45, 1:15 before the cutoff. My left shin starts bugging a little before I reach the aid station.

Part 4 - "To run an ultra is to keep going when everything else wants to stop" (lost where I got the quote from) - Mile 70 to 100
Now all that was left was the return back to the start. I had 10 hours to finish, pretty comfortable time wise. To regain calories I started eating processed food - candy, Oreos, anything with sugar. I meet Diana again and she passed me once again (she ran faster but took longer times at aid stations). She was in high spirits. My left shin that was bugging a little before flared up. I found out that if I landed my left foot on the toe the pain wasn't bad. By this time my quads were pretty burnt too. I did a mix of running and walking. I decided to lift my compression sleeve to let my shin breath. I ended up double wrapping the hurting part and it felt better. I went with it. At the next aid station I sat on the chair and took off the compression sleeve from my right leg and double wrapped my left shin. This aid station was also the one where the volunteer wished to see everyone on the return. It took me a year but I made it back. I continued to run walk. There was a beautiful sunrise on the horizon. Around 7 am I saw I got a messenger message from Brenda saying go Vikram and a text from Jian saying good luck. I guess I got service at some point during the race. That helped and I once turned to thoughts of friends and family to keep going. At mile 88 I reached the second last aid station. Every runner there looked done. Diana was there too, sitting in a chair with a face in a lot of pain. I thought she was done but a mile later she would pass me. She said she wanted to quit twice. I would not see her again. I also met Martin, a retired 62 year ago who DNF with me last year due to a time cutoff in a race in Montana (he started the race two hours late, I didn't). He was pacing a young man. Martin also did this race last year and succeeded in finishing where I DNF. It was weird but nice seeing him. Miles 88 to 96 were the most difficult. I walked in a limp, my left hand pushing down my left quad to walk. I thought I looked normal but a team passing by asked if my ankle was okay. I was spent and up for more than 24 hours, a bit sleepy. I walked to the aid station at mile 96. It was a very long 8 miles. It never came. I counted course cone markers to pass a bit of time. Towards the end of that walk I realized I wasn't going to make the 30 hour time cutoff. I tried running the downhills but that only caused to me walk slower whenever I stopped. I had no more to give. As approach the final aid some runners passing by gave a few words of encouragement but I knew it was over for me. I had no regrets, I was trying my best.

At the final aid station I ate some m&ms and refilled one bottle with glukos. I had one hour and 10 minutes to do 3.6 miles. It didn't give me any hope. I fully intended to limp walk the rest in pain. As I was leaving, a man told me how much time I had and then he said that Martha wanted me to finish. I woke up at those words. I ate a gu gel (after over 12 hours of not eating one being afraid of upsetting the stomach) that I had left in my pocket and after hours of feeling beat and unable to run, I ran hard. Uphill, downhill, lung burning it didn't matter. Somehow I was able to keep going. All I think and hear was my breathing. Time sped up. With about .3 left to go I met two runners who finished and had gone back to cheer. They told me I only had one hill to go up and then down to the road. It was great hearing that. I broke into tears hitting the road about .1 miles from the finish. I tried to hold it in as I finished. A few people were still cheering and I thanked them on the way. I broke completely into tears at the finish. Another runner's pacer who finished 4 seconds before me gave me a long hug. Then I got hugs by both race directors and in the process I knocked the belt buckle out of the RD'a hand. The belt buckle is like the medal of 100 milers.

It's funny isn't it? After all my strategies failed, what saved me were the words that a stranger said from another stranger wanting me to finish.

Afterwards I found out that my compression sleeve fix for my shin caused swelling but lucky elevating it quickly reduced that. It wasn't a good idea. The shin recovery however will have to wait a few days to figure out. It still hurts and feels tender. I had no crew but people volunteered all over to help me. Everything from getting my drop bags, food and drinks, medical help, and even walking with me, carrying my running vest and two bags to the car. All strangers, only got one of their names (Pamela from Seattle who helped me to the car).

I was the last official finisher and thus the last to get the belt buckle. I saw two others finish the 100 miles but just a little bit too late. I was going to be in their shoes but I was lucky enough to hear what I needed to hear at exactly the right moment.

As you could tell, my race was far from perfect but somehow I kept moving. I finally know now what it means to run an ultra. It was never about the distance, it was about about being completely broken down and then finding the strength to keep going. That eventually wears out and you have to keep digging to find another one. I read about this before but it was completely different to experience it.

Mountain Lakes 100 - Preconditions - The Journey

Last year, the cold and with quads hurting for miles I quit the Mountain Lakes 100. I had only gone 10% farther than my previous longest run (a 50 mile race). I still remember it clearly, my quads started bugging at mile 30ish and we're hurting by mid 40s. I slowed to a walk and not prepared for the drop in temperature of the night, got cold. The hard cutoff was at mile 70, I knew I wasn't going to make it and couldn't imagine going farther so I quit at the aid station at mile 55. I still have mixed feelings about it, I remember how horrible I felt but I also feel like quitting is against the idea I have of myself.

I sort of fell into a running slump after the race, I still ran races but wasn't doing well and just not motivated. I knew I had to try the 100 miler again but sometimes I would play with the idea of missing registration in my head. It wasn't till I was asked about it during a hike in January that I decided to definitely do it.

Also in January I happened to randomly pick two books to read where nutrition was played a big role. Finding Ultra and Whole: Rethinking the Science of Nutrition which slowly convinced me to changed my diet (I had to go through a couple more books as I figured things out). That started me on a course to slowly lose 50 pounds and with faster recoveries, I went from 25 miles a week of running to 60 plus miles a week while still biking and swimming (a bit). I gained free speed and for the first time since my second year of running I was crushing my previous PRs in all distances.

I decided to run more ultras this year and made destinations a part of the fun. A 50k in the Santa Montica mountains by LA, a 50k in the desert by Las Cruces, a 100k by the beautiful gorges and waterfalls by Portland, 50K in the finger lakes forest near Ithaca and another 50K around the volcano St. Helen. Training runs were also in the beautiful close by Palisades and Harriman state park, extending to the White and Green Mountains of New England.

Another strong boost to my running was joining a running club or two. During a run in March I met a man who ran with me for a while. We talked about running quite a bit and he encourage me to join a running group. I applied for Queens Distance Runners that night. Shorty after I moved from eastern Queens to western Queens and I ended up close to a whole bunch of running groups. On my second day, with boxes still to be unpacked I found out that WoodsideSunnyside Runners were doing a long run starting a half mile from me so I joined them. They clubs have been a good motivation to go running but I also drew inspiration just from seeing people so devoted to running. I started doing speed workouts for the first time and even followed my first training plan ever.

For September I decided to complete in three different types of endurance events. A Half Ironman (triathlon with 1.2 mile swim, 56 mile bike ride, and 13 mile run), Spartan Beast (14ish mile obstacle course racing up and down a mountain) and this 100 mile trail race. I didn't make the swim cutoff for the Half Ironman which cut that race short (bummer but next time)! After a two day mental break I started running again, without biking or swimming I ended up running more than scheduled but recovery seems okay. I did well on the Spartan race but scraped my right knee. I haven't been running since then to allow myself to cautiously recover. Last shakeout run is tomorrow! Feeling excited!

I know I'm physically capable of running 100 miles, the struggle is going to happen between the ears.

Picture: Sunrise at Olallie Lake, the start/finish of Mountain Lakes 100

Gorges 100k

Gorge 100k

A goal: Sub 16 hours
B goal: Sub 17 hours (official finisher + entry into lottery for 2018 Western states 100 miler, often called the Boston of 100 milers)
C goal: Make it pass the last aid station before cutoff so I could finish 100k, regardless of being an official finisher or not.

I took some pictures of waterfalls the day before so I don't have to worry about that during the race. I simply stock my drop bags with my favorite fuel foods, a hydration pack at the drop bag at 22 and an extra jacket in drop back mile 49. I have a running vest with some gels and 2 16 oz bottles. Never had so many drop bags before and I hit 3 of them twice!

The race director gave us a few rules
Don't get run over by a car
Don't slip and fall 50 to 100 feet
Don't push a tourist off a cliff

No name (0 to 6) - The first mile of the race starts at a grassy trail connecting Benson state recreation area to Multnomah falls. I quickly fall last place, and only start catching up on the first downhill which comes after a nice long uphill. I take the downhills easy, fearful of burning out my quads like I did in my 100 miler attempt in the fall. My garmin has my heart rate as fairy high so I check my Fitbit and it seems normal (under 150). So I end up ignoring heart rate for the entire race (Fitbit requires you to swipe a few times to see heart rate making it fairly inconvenient). It's my third time in this area and for some reason this time, looking at the vastness of the Columbia river I feel very small.

Yeon (6 to 13) - I refill my running vest which has water bottles with water mixed with gu brew. Towards the end of this distance I end up going back and forth with about the same three people. Didn't find people as chatty, guess I'm too close to a major city area? A runner asks me what my mileage is and I tell her the distance in kilometers, struggle a bit to calculate the simple conversion. The race goes two miles on road and I hit exact kilometer splits on them. I was a bit proud of that at the moment.

Cascade lock (13 to 22) - This area of the trail is fairly muddy. A man I pass jokes welcome to the tough mudder. There are quite a few fallen trees, some requiring me to crawl a bit under, others I am able to go over. I do a run walk on uphills, I usually just walk it but I started feeling slightly cold walking for so long. I miscalculate the distance and end up drinking all my fluids.

Wyeth (22 to 31) - 9 miles to the turnaround point! I take my hydration pack (2 liters of water) with me. I push myself to make it to the turnaround point. I draw on moments where friends have came out to cheer me and I replay those memories to get me through. I made it to the aid station at 8:10 but it was a struggle. I make sure I eat along the way.

Mediation mode (31 to 40) - I feast on fruits and start making my way back. I leave with the same pack of runners I been around since around the half marathon distance. The first few miles are a struggle, I feel beat. I lose the pack putting my running jacket on. I start to take long deep breathes to pace myself. In and out the nose. Soon I end up only focusing on the breathes and the pain disappears. My subconscious takes over pretty much everything, the breath is the only thing consciously I'm focused on. I start moving faster. Food starts to give me a burst of energy and I feel like I could do a negative 50k split. I feel great! I quickly catch up and overtake the pack. A bit later I catch up to a man and woman. The man says "yea, you better run". At first I thought he was mocking me, then I realize we must be close to the cutoff. A downhill soon starts and I decide to not save anything for later, all out.

Tough Mudder (40 to 49) - Made it to the aid station but informed that cutoff is in a few. I kind of panic and start rushing the next mile. I end up exhausting myself. Back to breathing and everything starts going good. Here I encounter the fallen trees again. Instead this time I rarely go over any, choosing to go under. After a waterfall where a race photographer takes a pic I find out that the trail to continue requires about 30 feet of vertical gain of rope to get on top to. I guess this is why trails are more fun.

Despair and Hope (49 to 56) - A runner limps to the aid station and shortly drops out. I have nothing but utmost respect and admiration for people that made it this far. I put a jacket on top of my race vest, probably not looking too much like a runner but I'm a bit fearful of being cold at night (can you tell how much my failed 100 miler haunts me yet?). The sun is setting and the rest of the race will soon be in the dark. The race goes two miles on pavement which I thought would be great but as I hit the pavement both my IT bands flared up. The pain took over my mind and I was not able to mediate my way out of it. I struggled though. This completely demoralized me (I was expecting the road to be a sweet break) and I concluded that I could not make it to the next aid station. Back on the trail I feel a bit better. Took a little while to get back to my mediation mode. I check my watch and realize I could make it, with hope I move along happily. I do end up taking a nasty fall right after passing someone (so embarrassing) trying to get over a tree.

Finish (56 to 62) - Made it to the last aid station! No free ride to the finish line for me. C goal is achieved, though at this point I have a chance to make it to B goal. Only 6 miles and a huge climb left: I struggle though the trail at first but soon the race hits a paved trail up Multnomah falls. Despite the many switch backs I find the paved path going up easier than trail and I am able to move at a steady pace. Eventually I hit trail again and the struggle continues. Downhill starts soon after. I find the muddy downhill to not be much of a problem. There was one section where a strong stream overtook the trail which caused a few minutes of confusion. Back on more level ground I run slowly to the finish. Seeing the finish line, I see the clock tick 17:14:40 and sprint to try to get it under 17:15. My official time is 17:15:26 on ultrasignup. I missed the 17 hour deadline which would have gotten me into the Western States Lottery but I don't really care, lol.

And that's it! The race had no finisher medal or belt buckle. Afterwards there was pizza being made in a oven, had two olive slices and then back to Portland.

Note: My watch battery died so the mileage is a bit short. I believe most Garmins in the past record 63.5 miles for the course.