I am deeply grateful that everything came together so smoothly for this run, my 4th running of the American Tobacco Trail out-&-back, to be strong enough to reclaim the men’s unsupported FKT and to be one of my best ultra runs ever landing me several PRs. I really love the American Tobacco Trail and these out-&-backs are such a fun and exciting way for me to challenge myself and see how my fitness and endurance are stacking up against my personal history and the other FKT challengers. It’s also just a really pleasant way to spend a morning! I appreciate everyone who cheers for me, and for all the other runners of this route who inspire me! Thank you!
This 44 mile run is beautiful, but it's never easy, yet this is by far the smoothest it's gone for me. It's never fun at the end, but this time I was not destroyed or depleted, so I was still able to hear the birds and picture my kids’ and Annie's faces in between pushing myself to go harder. What a treat it is to experience this beautiful place with happy thoughts still flowing during an intense effort.
My run was pretty smooth, relative to ultras. I packed light and for the first time made my run happen while the water fountains were still all on, which is a massive benefit. (Refills do still eat time, but at least I stay close to the trail, so I recommend timing this FKT with water-fountain season.) The weather on this run was just about the most perfect setting you could ever imagine for a run like this - 40°F at the start and a nice low 60s by the end. I've gotten efficient with my fuels so only had a little bit to carry. I started at first light and skipped the headlamp, only needing my handheld flashlight for a few minutes. I went with removable arm sleeves to make the early miles tolerable but allow me to trim down as it warmed.
I had 8:00/mi in mind as my mark to stay ahead of, and I found it not hard at all in the first half to do that, which was a hugely satisfying and relieving discovery. I built a cushion and just kept rolling. I hoped running around Z2.0-2.5 most of the way would put me in contention for sub-6 hours, and at the halfway mark I was several minutes ahead of schedule, even with lost time for traffic stops. The second half gradually slowed, but never so much that I was blowing my cushion. The final 10 miles was when I'd promised myself I would run harder, and that was no fun at all, but I was doing it (at least in intensity of effort - not necessarily faster.) My legs were feeling pretty cooked in the last hour but I was still plenty capable of pushing, so I mostly just stayed in that sustainable sweet spot of Z2.5 with little bursts higher whenever I got worried. Little by little I realized (without actually checking time/distance) that I should have the FKT, and I restrained my urge to look until only ¼mi left to go, where I saw I had 2 minutes to beat 6 hours, earning me the title by 10 minutes.
I cheered for myself as I crossed the finish line, and two kind cyclists took an interest and added to the celebration, asking me what I did and getting their minds blown.
On my run I consumed:
- 1L homemade endurance smoothie
- 1 homemade cinnamon roll
- 1 homemade cereal bar with jelly filling
- 2x skratch servings
- Probably about 6-7L water
I refilled my bottles at these water fountains:
- New Hope Church Road trailhead
- Solite Park, both out and back (this one eats the most time getting to/from but its unavoidable with no other fountains this end of the trail)
- Pittard Sears Road trailhead
- White Oak Church Road trailhead
I intentionally avoided stopping at Herndon Park - making sure to fill up thoroughly before that point - because I learned from past runs the side-trail to get up there eats way too much time. That decision saved me several minutes.
Everything else was pretty mundane - ran the whole way except pee stops and a 30 second stop to remove a pesky rock from my shoe, lost maybe 3-5 minutes total for crosswalks, and otherwise had a pretty quiet day on the trail.
I am very aware that moments like this, performances like this, are a gift that I give myself through years of hard work and long hours of deep, intense effort. I am really thankful to myself that I went for it and stuck with it to the end. And thank you all again too!