100 Miles of Fun!
“When you believe in your abilities you can run any distance, including the distance you once believed was impossible.”
This weekend was one of the craziest weekends ever in my life. I set out to complete a very huge goal and while it didn’t go exactly how I planned, I was able to persevere and finish.
Prior to signing up for Massanutten, I had no idea what this race was about. I knew I wanted to run a 100 miler and this date fit best into my schedule, so I figured what the hell, I’ll give it a whirl. (I recommend doing more research before committing to something like this lol). Massanutten is all rocks and elevation gain, making it one of the most challenging courses on the east coast. It is not a very runnable course or very beginner friendly. It attracts very experienced athletes and lots of local runners who are used to climbing these epic mountains.
This course kicked my ass. I grossly underestimated the impact the rocks and elevation would have on my body. While I was happy the rain forecasted never came, the humidity really compounded the difficulty of the course. I skirted cutoff times most of the day. Each section got drastically harder than the last with more rocks, several river crossings, tons of mud, more vertical climbs that lasted for miles, gnarly descents, challenging switchbacks, narrow paths & ridge lines… it was a wonder I didn’t fall off the mountain lol. Finally at mile 87 I missed the cut off. I knew going into the aid station I was out. I was bummed but was super proud of myself for making it that far and for what I had accomplished. So, as I pulled into the aid station and was told my race was over, I thanked the race official, Quattro and said it was a wonderful learning experience and I was happy to be there. As he took my number, I asked if I could still go on and finish even if it was “unofficial”. He looked at me rather surprised. I told him that this was my first hundred-mile race and I wasn’t ready to throw in the towel quite yet. I needed to finish. I hadn’t come this far to only come this far. I insured him I’d be ok; I had a pacer and crew and they would be there to support me. So, he agreed to let me continue. My incredible pacer, Mark downloaded the gps file of the course (since the race would be coming to a close, they’d be taking down course markings) and after rewrapping my feet and changing my socks for the 6th time that day, away we went. Quattro even came to every check point making sure I was ok and provided us with food and supplies. He went above and beyond even waiting at the finish to congratulate me and my hard work. He made the experience all the better with his outpouring of kindness and support and sticking around for several extra hours when he didn’t have to.
So I finished my first hundred miler in about 37 hours. It wasn’t totally how I planned, but I did it none the less and am super proud of the hard work and grit I showed this weekend. I continuously got knocked down, but I got up every time!
We will experience setbacks, misses, and failures in life but we learn from them and we can either give up and throw in the towel or keep pushing forward. I decided to push forward. I had a goal of running a hundred miles and I accomplished it. I plan to do another 100 mile race again, but will definitely do a little more research and pick one with maybe fewer rocks and climbs.
Huge shout out to my incredible Team who traveled quite a way and gave up their weekend to support me. My good friend Mark flew in from San Francisco just to help pace, running 46 miles with me. I mean how many people would want to do that?!?! And then there was Landon who drove several hours to crew and make sure I was well fed and hydrated. Landon was awake just as long as I was, about 45 hours straight and he did everything without a complaint and with a smile on his face. I couldn’t have done it without these two and can’t thank them enough. I’m grateful to call them my friends. I’m truly blessed to be supported by so many incredible people.