Background:
To be honest I had no idea what I was getting myself into when I decided to take on this challenge. Most ultra-runners I have had conversations with always said build up the distances, run a marathon, then a 50k then a 50 miler, move that experience into a 100k and so on... Maybe I should've taken their advice but I did not. Before this FKT attempt the longest distance I had ran was just over 42 miles in a little over 11 hours, not bad, but not at all what this FKT attempt would require. Training for this was consistent and wasn't super demanding other than putting in the weekly miles as this route to say the least lacks any sort of elevation gain. 50+ mile weeks, weekend long runs, and recovery were all the norm everything seem to just go to plan, even the weather window was fantastic!
The Attempt:
2:00am wake up call. Hard to call it a wakeup call when you didn't sleep a lick well I got 20 minuets from 1:40am-2:00am according to my Garmin watch but that in all honesty was more than what it had felt like. The weather a crisp 52 degrees with winds coming from the north slightly cloudy, but in all honesty... perfect. I load my pack, hit the bathroom and there was nothing more to do but hit the trail. 2:35 am start time that means I have until 7:07pm to hit the new FKT mark, I press run on my watch and were off. The trail nice and hard packed with the rain a few days prior keeping the dust at bay, the trail fast but needing a slight retouch from the bike traffic when the trial was wet. The first 6 miles go by at a 10:57/mile pace faster than anticipated but no room for complains the body is liking it with a 130 average heart rate. I hit my first drop bag at mile 6 reload the water, mix up new tailwind and grab a Peanut Butter packet to go. Mile 13 comes and goes and I hit a half marathon in 2:22:00 just at a 10:53 pace the body still accepting it and I prepare myself for the next stop that will make or break the FKT attempt. At mile 14.2 I hit Cortland and make my way into the Sinclair gas station, its hard to look in place a little after 5:00am but the group of hunters looking to hit the stand before work, and the truck drivers with their load made me feel right at home. I pick up a butter finger bar, hit the bathroom and get back to the trail. The run is rather uneventful and I hit mile 21 where I pickup my next drop bag, refill my water, grab more nutrients and go. Mile 26 marks the marathon distance in a time of 5:15:07 and the rain starts... Wait rain? That sure wasn't in the forecast, this might be a problem if it keeps up. Weather its dumb luck, or smart thinking I just happened to decide to wear my weather proof jacket since it was a bit brisk when I started the attempt and it is what sustained my ability to continue on with this attempt. Mile 31 hits half way and a 50k complete in 6:19:33 a new PR and only the second time I had hit this distance in my running career. At mile 32 I hit my next aid stop, get a great breakfast, and even better a fresh Coca-Cola and caffeine which gave me a bit of a pep and rid me of my need for slumber. Mile 36 is where my run started to change from a run into a battle with the clock itself, I knew I was ahead of pace but also knew that I was in no place to start being lazy with my pace mile 36-41 I would argue were the most mentally demeaning of the run as my pace started to slow and felt my run and attempt fall out of my control. Mile 42, at this point I had been away for essentially 27 hours straight and the hallucinations began, never in my life had I experienced hallucinations and in all honesty I didn't know what they were like or how they would effect me and my ability to continue forward. Blue crickets for miles, baby box turtles on the trail that I tried to pick up until I got close and realized it was dog excrement, as well as seeing deer on the trail which were not there, and even following Jonas Vingegaard for miles with his iconic red and white helmet, but none the less it was all a figment of my imagination. Mile 48 hits and I had a choice to make stop in Corland or just keep on pressing on, in the end I chose to press on, and it again saved the FKT attempt. Mile 50 is where the true slugfest began, my current pace and distance from the finish had me within 15 min of making the 7:07pm cutoff and I wasn't sure if I would succeed. By mile 54 the hallucinations were ever increasing, peacocks on the trail side, the floaters in my eyes were now sticker cats, but I just kept pressing on even if it was only at a walking pace. With 10 miles left it was no longer a physical game but a mental game, I knew I had 3 miles until my final drop bag and after that it was a straight shot to the finish. At my last drop bag I had a Poptart which instantly lifter my mood, and carried on I knew I had 2.5 hours until the cutoff and I was going to need every bit of those 2.5 hours to make it to the end. As I got closer back to the trail head the trail traffic picked up and the hallucinations wore off, I got to pet a few dogs, waved at by cyclist and encountered a few other runners, but none had any idea of what I was going through mentally or physically. The last mile was a lot less emotional than I had expected, it was no different than how I felt finishing a training run, or finishing a test in high school, simply it was done.
What I say:
This run was not at all what I had expected but was an incredible learning experience. My nutrition was perfect I never had stomach issues, no hydration issues, or felt I was lacking any from of nutrients to keep my moving. The only true shortfall of my training that I could think of was my lack of strength training which is something I will ensure I focus on more if I decided to take on longer races. I also will plan to have better sleep beforehand as being awake for 37 hours straight was not all that enjoyable and would've made my attempt much more enjoyable if I had a few hours of sleep beforehand. Lastly I think I could easily take an hour or so off of this run just by getting more sleep beforehand, and working on a bit of strength training. Now to say I don't believe I would attempt this FKT again unless I had a true reason to gun for it. I also do believe this FKT can easily be beat and would be more than willing to give my notes or advice to anyone who would like to attempt it.
Total Time: 16:08:01
Water Consumed: 2.92 Gallons (11.05 L)
Calories Consumed: 2,390
Weight lost: 7.2lbs (3.26kg)
Steps taken: 102,240
If you made it this far thanks for reading, and run on!