Saturday, June 29, 2013

2013 - CREEMORE 50KM - RACE REPORT

Hello again. 

I just signed up for the 50km Creemore ultra which takes place at Creemore which is South of Collingwood and South West of Barrie. I'll do another 2:00 am or 3:00 am drive up, crash for a few hours and hopefully be ready for my 5th race of the season and the 5th on the OUS calendar. The races are coming along thick and fast these days but all the REALLY hard ones are after this one. I've almost decided I"m going to do the 48 hour Dirty Girls run. I was going to do 24 hour but for an extra $60 I can double the agony! How could I resist. 

I've never done the Creemore course before which is 2 loops of 25km but by all accounts it sounds like it's going to be bloody tough. It's a mix of technical single track and long country road. It's hilly, hilly and then hilly. I believe each loop goes up the Niagara Escarpment twice. It's not mountains but for Ontario it's the hilliest thing we have. And it's always hot and sunny (well, mostly) and as you know by now I hate the heat/humidity. I am enjoying getting to know the different races and testing myself in different conditions.

I got a call from the doctor with my X-ray and MRI results and the news is mostly good thankfully. The foot X-ray didn't show a fracture which I'm happy about. The bruising/intense pain I got on the foot during Kingston I have no idea how it came about. I told the doctor I didn't want to follow up with an MRI on the foot. I'll continue to ice it and hope it was a one-off thing. Very strange. The MRI on the hip area didn't show a stress fracture either. It did show mild arthritis however and also fluid in the abdomen. I said, huh? What kind of fluid. He said it's likely blood plasma (blood without the red blood cells). I said, OK, and? He started asking me all sorts of questions and he wants to do another collection of bloodwork and an ultrasound. He poked and prodded me but I've got no problems with pain on the abdomen. So that was that. Nothing that is going to stop me running in the next few weeks at least.

I went for a 9.5 mile run on Thursday which was 5 days after the Niagara ultra. I was stiff/sore for 4 of those days and the run was not pretty. I really felt winded/knackered and walked allot but at least I got out there. I'll probably do 2 more runs before Creemore, one a gentle 6 miler and then a 12-13 miler early in the week.

That's about it for now. I hope all of you are getting out there and that you are remaining injury free. I've learned quite a few things so far this season with the running and no doubt will learn many more things (the hard way) before the season is over. Still to come is this crazy 48 hour Dirty Girls - how the hell do you prepare for something like that? After that is the 100 mile Haliburton run - my first 'proper' 100 miler. And then the second last race of the season will be a 24 hour indoor track race. By the end of the season I'll have really gotten a flavor of many different terrains and distances. Well, I'll sign off on this report for now. Oh wait! I can't leave yet without a pre-race prediction.

At Niagara I was 11 minutes behind my prediction and was disappointed not to crack 5 hours - the cramps just wouldn't leave me. This Creemore looks like a really tough cookie so I'm going to say 5 hours 45 minutes
Take care everybody.


THE NIGHT BEFORE

I did my usual race prep, getting all my gels and creams. I applied duct tape to the balls of each foot as I have a few deep blisters and I'm hopeful the tape stays where I put it and gives protection.

I had an early night and intended to get up and leave by 3:45am. I didn't sleep well at all which is a shame since my Thursday night was restful. It wasn't that Creemore and an unknown race was on my mind and was causing anxiety, just many thoughts about a woman who was in my life until recently. Be that as it may, the alarm went off and I got up, had my cereal, had my morning constitutional and out the door I went with my directions.

RACE MORNING

The drive up was very uneventful - I do like to leave in the middle of the night. It took about 2 hours and as I headed up Highway 410 and then Highway 10 the rolling hills started and as I got further up into Hockley Valley and Mansfield (the site of the 48 Dirty Girls I signed up for happening in August) it was apparent why they call this the Vertical Challenge! Holy crap. I was now starting to worry! I had no problems finding the parking lot and some cars were there with people in the back. I couldn't see any tents but found them later - there is a big open area with trees at the finishing line.

I lay in the back of the car with the back windows open and there was a nice little breeze coming through and while I didn't sleep, I just relaxed and felt comfortable knowing I was now settled.  A short while later I heard another car and the vehicle after that was a mini-van with Richard Takata. I've run into him over the last few races. A really nice man. He loves his ultra running and has an arsenal of creams/balms/gels/tape at the ready. Here is a photo of him and I after the race.


Richard Takata and I after the race
I eventually got up to pick up my race number and bib. No timing chip. They call out the numbers as you go through the laps. Our race, being the longest of course started before the others, at 8am. With the race bib we also got a lovely bright T-shirt which was technical material. It was lime-green. I love funky bright colors so this one will stay in the collection longer than some. I had a clean out of T-shirts a few weeks ago and said goodbye to of them.

Race Pick up - 25km or 0 km? ha ha. I'll register for that one!

Start/Finish line / clock

Race start on this driveway - everybody getting ready

Into the trees at the end of this driveway on the right side - all the country roads much like this one

My sleeping quarters for a few hours - looking ready for the challenge
I visited the port-a-pottie again and headed back to the car, chatted to Richard and then began to see familiar faces and said hellos or waved. People were milling around, getting organised, saying hello to friends. I saw Elise McGuire and gave her a hug of congratulations on her excellent showing at the Canadian Death Race in Alberta. It was a staged 5 day event and was extremely tough. I followed her progress each day and here she was 2 weeks later.

Elise McGuire 2 weeks after her Dessert Rats 5 Day Stage Race - beat me by one position.

I saw Ron Gerhl handing out straws to 'his' girls. It's funny. I'll have to find out more about what it all means. I ran into Kim and her husband again and her bright smile is infectious. I got to have a few words with Pierre, the race director. I've seen his face often at the races but didn't know who he was until recently. He often runs with Helen Malmburg who is race director of Haliburton Forest. She's not been at the last two events but looks like she has entered the Limberlost race next weekend. It is really close to her (I think she has a cottage up in Haliburton) although she lives in Toronto.

With all the chatting I realized I only had 15 minutes before the start so headed back to the car and sorted out my kit, bib, took a few photos with my lucky hair charm. Well, not lucky, but sentimental to me although I wish she was in my life and I didn't need a lock of hair to remember her by. But I digress. You want race information!

Coming along for the ride - and what a LONG ride it was

THE START

Loop 1 of 2 (25km each)

There was very little fan-fare. Pierre made a few quick announcements and the 50km runners lined up. I was with the first 30 I guess with many more behind. People were looking about for familiar faces to wish each other luck, or keen to get this thing under way. It was warm but not horrible yet but I thought when the sun got up and the morning got burned away things were going to get positively toasty. We started with a bang - literally - with a shot-gun blast.

The start was just down the driveway and then little flag markers had us turning a sharp right into the trees. At the time there were no cars parked on that side of the road and I was not tired and was simply following others which hopefully explains why I lost 5 minutes on the second loop after coming through the start. All the racers doing the shorter distances had arrived and turned things into a car park and I missed the turn-off into the trees and found myself on the road. I had to throw up at that point and a few cyclists asked if I was OK and asked if I was in the race. I said yes and he told me I was going the wrong way. Damn. . . he had done the race a number of years ago and was really thoughtful, offering me water from his supply but I told him I was OK just a bit tired. He walked back up the road with me and pointed out where I needed to go. I was a bit pissed that two ladies sitting in the shade right next to the turn-off hadn't yelled out for me to turn but am grateful to the guy that helped me.

The first 1km or so follows the little river and was fairly twisty but a nice way to start things. Definitely going too fast considering what was coming but trying to enjoy it while that feel-good factor is with you. We then popped out on a main road and took a right, following it for about 1/4km before taking a sharp right onto a gravel country road and there before us was a first hill - probably not even one of the nasty hills which is mentioned in the Creemore ultra website but damn, it looked steep. Like so many of the country roads up in that part of the world they are cheeky, with a little rise, then a BIG rise, then another little rise and sometimes another big rise just to demoralize you a little more.

I didn't mind too much. Yes, they are pigs but most people walk them unless you are extremely well-trained for hills which I was not. All the speed-demons were up there and I was following along in the next grouping. We were spread out and you could look up and see the people walking and so I got to a point and began to walk also. At the top I remember another sharp right and after this my report is going to be slightly fuzzy. I can remember main things on the trail but not all the twists and turns so bare with me.

I remember heading back into the woods and there was a lovely little section through pine trees with the needles on the woodland floor. We then came out in an open field and followed that. You could feel the heat already rising from the tall grasses. Boy it was getting hot. . . This woodland and grass section you did on the way back but there must have been a part that you didn't do because on the way back you had 2 VERY steep gullies with water at the bottom and one of them you needed to pull yourself up 2 ropes. This was hard when you were knackered and bloody hard when you're carrying a hand-held and wearing dark glasses and everything is muddy.

After coming out of the open fields you take a sharp left and that takes you on the country roads again and this road was bloody never ending! It was steep steep steep. There was an aid station right at the top of it thankfully and the aid station had the usual fares but these also had a big rectangular bucket with water, ice and sponges as well. You have no idea (maybe you do!) how welcome those stops were. It was enough to perk me up for another 1km at least. The volunteers are wonderful at every race but I did feel they made a great effort to help us at Creemore. They were running out to meet you before you got to them asking what you needed and sometimes they don't do that at other races and simply stay in their marquees and hand you things. When you are tired and they will take your handheld and fill it while you are still getting to the aid station, that is extra service and it was greatly appreciated.

Then I can't remember the course in detail but there were more times in the trails which were single track. I do remember one horrible section which came at around 15-18km and was in the woods. You had to climb and it was all rocks and sometimes mud and clay and again, it just went up and up. The second loop I had to stop 4 times just to get my breath back.

Now don't get me wrong. There were some downhills and they were a welcome relief although they could pound the hell out of your legs - gravity can be a bitch! There was a short(ish) woman that every time there was a downhill came flying by me on her little legs and I marveled  I really should lengthen my stride on the downhills and I am normally a sprinter downhills but in ultras I am very conservative, not wanting to create hotspots or blisters but they are a good way to make up lost time if you have the energy. On the first loop I did have some energy but near the end of the second loop I was having to walk downhills also sometimes. I'd use the evenly spaced electrical poles my incentive, walking one, running one or two and back to walking again. It worked quite well to motivate me.

I was at about the 17km mark which had taken us to the top of the escarpment and you take a right turn onto yet another gravel road, this one completely exposed to the sun. At that point Kimberly van Delst was with me. This worked out well for both of us I think. She had headphones and I kept ahead of her and would indicate when a vehicle was approaching and she helped me from going too quickly. I like people who have a good sense of pace and she is chipper and enthusiastic.

We passed by a silo and got a good whiff of manure - ahhhhhh. After being fairly flat for about 1km we go down a relatively steep hill and a 20km sign greets us - yeah, only 5 more to go. At this point we take a sharp right into a big field of something and then came out to a road with the last aid station and you have an awesome view down and across all the escarpment. The last hill is the one we initially climbed and damn it's steep either way.

Kimberly and I cruised down that last steep hill and then you are back in the grass fields. Kimberly went ahead to start but then wanted me to take the lead so I did but I was really beginning to flag. We got to a grassy downhill after than and she left me for dust. Shortly after that you get those two bastard steep gullies and then you are flat and pass by a rubbish dumb with some appliances and some bikes and then a little more downhill and you are out at the finish area. First you have to cross a wooden bridge which at the top bounces up and down with your steps making you feel like rubber. I believe you can run across the stream but I choose the dry option. On the other side of the bridge you pass by where the people were camping and then you are at the finish/start. Ahhh.

Time 2:43

Well, how was I feeling? Pretty shattered truth be told. I Had set out my chair and empty powder bottles with fresh water by my car so I ran to it and spent about 2 minutes refilling.


Lap 2

After filling my bottles I shuffled down the road and that's where I made my wrong turn, threw up, and found my way back onto the trail with some help. I was now walking allot along the river and by the time I got to the road I was pretty sure allot of the route was going to be walking. Just as I got to the road Ron came past me and he looked allot more chipper than me. He was helpful in suggesting I get those salt tablets in me which I had been doing pretty faithfully but at that point I didn't think much would stay down so I nibbled some ginger. I wished him well and watched him carry on.

Most of the second lap for me was a slug-fest, with some running when I could but with allot of walking sections up all the hills with some spurts down the hills. By now people were well and truly spread out. On a number of the road sections people were running/walking downhill and they were the 25km runners I believe. I'm sure based on the course and the heat many of them were looking at our sorry asses thinking, thank jeez I don't have to go out and do another lap! Poor bastards. But despite feeling sorry for myself I was always positive and upbeat to anybody coming past me in either direction and most people gave it back. It does perk you up to cheer someone else on and have their encouragement.

I was playing over in my head the tough sections to come and was groaning internally. The really steep rocky section in the trees I was definitely dreading and the steep road sections at least I knew I could walk - but some I could just feel the sun beating down on me and wondering if my thick application of sun screen would do the job. I'm as white as they come. At one point I ended up running with a man who was the race course director at Sulphur Springs for 4 years before Joe Hewitt took the job over. He was a nice guy and I think I passed him after a bit. People come and go. Some you play tag with once everybody is wrecked, others you never see again. Kim was long gone as was Ron and I was hoping their race was going well.

The only person still to see was Elise. Normally she would have passed me by earlier but she had done that stage race 2 weeks prior and after speaking with her told me this was going to be a training run (turns out she placed 2nd female in her age group :) So we're going up a steep hill and I have just passed another young man - barely. I had to stop and put my hands on my knees a few times going up. Then I hear a yell - 'GO ALEX'. :) I look back and there is Elise in her bright neon green running outfit. She's still quite a way down the hill but I yell back Hey Elise! I know it's just a matter of time before she catches me up and eventually she catches me at the point where you are on the pretty flat road that goes by the manure smell. She tells me not to give up and I tell her she's looking good and she runs about 100 yards more, walks and then I loose her over one of the rises.

I know it's on the home stretch now and this is where I'm running between hyro poles, using them as markers of when to stop and start running. I am still not at the mental toughness where I can push my body with my mind when things get tough but I'm working on it. Even a shuffle is faster than a walk and I do loose places because I just can't force myself along at a shuffle. At this point I think the finishing positions were pretty much decided. I knew I'd only pass one or 2 more or get passed by one or two more. I got down the moderate hill to the turn-off into the fields and saw the 5km sign. It was through there to the aid station at 3km. We were at the top of a HUGE hill which we'd come up earlier and after a lovely cooling sponge bath and a top up of water with ice and even some ice in my hat (ahhhh - brain freeze) it was time to go.

Running down was painful but the view was magnificent  I could see Elise for a short while and then lost sight of her. I saw another man who was walking and slowly reeled him in. I remembered him and his friend passing me by earlier looking really strong. He looked like I felt. His name was Sebou and we spoke after his finish and I met his friend. He had lovely skin and was from Niger. He was a marathon runner and this was his first ultra - he picked a hell of an intro to ultras. By this point he was just someone to try to pass if I could although to be honest I didn't really give a rats ass by that point and just wanted to see the finish line. I wanted to immerse myself in that stream.

We get to the grass fiends and my new 'target' is still ahead of me but now I get up to him and stay behind him for a little. He is struggling and it turns out he was have leg cramping issues – I remember those from two weeks ago in Niagara. Not pleasant. I didn't have allot of heart left but when we got to the top of the section I managed to pass by and offer some encouragement. We then headed down into the woods on our way to those steep gullies. This time I tucked my glasses inside my shirt so I could see what was coming. Down the first gully allot of people had made the mud slick and I tried to skirt to the left and managed to catch my shorts on a thick branch which wedged my shorts up, jamming my testicles sharply. Oh thank you for that moment Gods of running. This time I held my handheld in my mouth and had slightly more success using the rope on the other side. At the top I had to stop for breath but now I didn't want to be passed and was waiting for sounds of pursuit. None reached me and off I went, determined now I knew how close the finish line I was.

Along came the rubbish tip again and then the open field. I knew the finish line was almost upon me. I got to the wood bridge which this time around wobbled me around even more. A few spectators clapped and then I was up through the tree cover and past the finish line and was rewarded with my hand-made ceramic medal. Job done!

Actual Finish 6:20.
Predicted Finish – 5:45

How do I feel about it? I feel really proud I finished this course. The results were not published in time for me to see where I placed but I don’t care. Anybody finishing this course on that day deserves a medal. I expect there will be quite a high DNF rate. Pierre extended the finishing time to 8:30. I stood for about 4 minutes with my hands on my knees just getting my breath back. I spotted some comfy looking chairs in the shade and sat down, chatting with a guy I’d played tag with in the final stages. A first aid medic asked me if I’d like a cold bottle of water and I jumped at that. Thank you! He wanted to take my pulse and it was 113 so my heart was starting to recover. I must have looked a bit rough.

I wanted to get to the pizza and walked down a short path and there was a nice open marquee with a few picnic tables put together and a lovely spread of HOT pizza in several flavors along with grapes, pineapple slices, cherries and other things but I grabbed pizza and sat on the bench and between that and the cold water in my hand – I was overjoyed. I never found the beer and to be honest I didn’t care. I had what I wanted. All the people I’d met over the series to date were there and we hugged, shook hands, shared stories, congratulated each other and asked about finish times. It was hard to see others finishing their races on this particular course. I finally met Jack Kilisian who I recognized from many of the other races. He is shortish with a cheeky grin and generally runs without a shirt. He is going to place well in the overall standings and I am keeping my eye on him. Ha ha. Let’s just say if he does more races he’ll beat me overall. He’s a fast runner.

Pierre then announced it was time for the awards presentation and we sat there and cheered while the winners picked up their honey, syrup, home made ceramic bowls and coffee I think. I’ll have to try to win some time to find out! Ha ha. I knew a number of the winners and that felt good. The overall male winner broke the course record and it was his first ultra! Holy crap. . . we’ll be seeing him again.

Since I've now done 6 of the OUS series races (5 this year to date) I’d like to give you MY placings from hardest to easiest race courses.

<!--[if !supportLists]-->1)    <!--[endif]-->Creemore50% trail, 50% country road – 2x up and down escarpment – very hilly and usually hot
<!--[if !supportLists]-->2)   LimberlostAlmost all tree covered, beautiful course – most pretty for me to date – spongy underfoot, boardwalks, many ups and downs but nothing crazy, hard to get into a rhythm, many roots, lovely lake scenery, woods. May be longer than 56km.
<!--[if !supportLists]-->3)  Pick Your PoisonI found it tough. There are a number of flat sections but also this course is all within the ski hills so you know it is hilly. Some technical sections with trees/logs to clamber over. A few places of tight single track with switchbacks.
<!--[if !supportLists]-->4)    <!--[endif]-->Sulphur Springs
The course is undulating but only 2 quite tough hills which are nowhere the scale of Creemore. Well groomed and wide with no scrambling over logs or real worries about foot placement. Great course to attempt 100 miles.
<!--[if !supportLists]-->5)    Niagara
My home. There are some hills going in and out of
Niagara Falls which hurt more on the way back but besides that there is only one nasty hill going up the escarpment. It is all paved and is flat in many places - a good place for a fast time - can be hot.
<!--[if !supportLists]-->6)    Kingston
6 hours around a 1km paved path around a Fort, along the water and back through the Fort. It may sound like a total drag to run round and round such a short loop but you get far more close to your competitors and I enjoyed the experience. It is completely flat except for a tiny rise as you get inside the Fort. You get a personalized lap counter and the aid station is never far away. No need for handhelds.

Once I've finished the season I’ll expand on my rankings and give marks based on toughness, beauty, organization and anything else I can think of.

Well, after the presentations they had spot prizes of shirts and there must have been about 80 handed out and I got one of the last ones. Thank you. I was desperate to experience that stream and asked the way, hobbled down to the bank and there were about 5 others already there soaking. I believe earlier there had been about 30 in the water. I couldn’t be bothered to go back to the car to get my camera so you’ll just have to take my word how lovely it was sitting in the stream after the intense sun and heat and exertion. It was fast enough flowing and cold enough to be delicious. It had a rocky bottom so I left my stuff at the side and waded in, sitting on a rock and initially washing the muck from my shoes, then began to immerse myself slowly until the current was washing over my entire body. Ahhhhh, wash away that deep sweat.


Very happy to have earned this medal
Elise and Richard Takata came to join me and for about 20 minutes we just relaxed and then I started to feel a little chilled and decided it was time to head home. I got out and went to the car, first stopping by to see Chris McPeake and his wife Kim. I got to the car and changed and Richard was there, kindly took a photo of my finishing medal and then we said we’d catch up soon. My feet, when I took off my shoes were in fairly good shape I thought to start. No black toes and the duct tape had done the job well, protecting my foot pads, but unfortunately I got very bad blistering on each of my heels and 2 days later they are still very painful. I tried popping but blood was squirting out so I’ve decided to let some of the fluids absorb before attempting to prick them again. Ah, the life of ultra running. . .

After Creemore I was absolutely sure I would not do Limberlost because I’m shattered and because it’s a long drive. But then there was a guy from Ottawa soaking his feet and his drive was closer to 6 hours so why am I whining. Sitting at work now on Monday I am really stiff, hobbling around and the blisters are causing me concern. Fortunately the limit has not been reached at Limberlost and I’m going to see how the next few days go. I really do want to crack this course after failing really badly at it last year (dropped after 3 laps in 6 hours!). We’ll see.

Thank you as always for reading my very wordy race report. Stay well and if you have the time and inclination you should definitely do Limberlost. It’s tough but beautiful.

Oh, I just looked at the results posted 3 days later and I placed 41st of 98 - 13 of those DNF'd. I seem to be slipping fast. Oh well. 

I'd like to do Limberlost but it is now almost Wednesday and my legs are still sore and my blisters kinda smart. VIEWER DISCRETION IS ADVISED. 

Mmmmm, I love ultra running. Anybody hungry? Not anymore! Wait until after the 48 hour Dirty Girls!

See you soon.
Alex

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