Training Log Archive: Dolf

Event: Lark Hill Dusk to Dawn 50/100k
 

Event: Murdoch University NavDash
 

I went into this race with a plan to keep my effort under control early and not get caught up running at a pace that may be comfortable for 20 or 30km but take too much out of me for the later stages. I picked a HR of 144 and wrote it on my arm as a reminder. I allowed myself to go over slightly on some hills but was very aware of trying to keep the effort consistent and as close to 144 as possible.
The trail was pretty smooth other than a sandy section about 2-300m long on the back corner of the loop. I ran the whole race without a head torch, able to see the outline of the trail but no detail until the moon came out after a couple of hours. I kicked a few rocks and had a couple of almost stumbles on the sandy section but going without the light made it easier to keep the pace down a bit.
Running a 3k loop is easy... running it 17 times is certainly tougher than a straight 51k. The hill leading up to the start/finish/aid station got bigger each lap and having a small loop around the homestead ruin seemed to always break my rhythm. I loved the support of having encouragement from volunteers & other runners on a regular basis rather than being stuck on your own for long stretches without seeing anyone.
I ran the first 18km at an average pace of 5:45, but was starting to have a few gastro issues and needed a toilet break near the end of lap 6 losing a few minutes. The next 21km was run at an average pace of 6:05 due mostly to more frequent and slightly longer breaks at the aid station, trying to prevent further stomach pains. I was still running all but the aid station loop and passing quite a few people who were walking sections by this stage but it wasn't possible to know it I was passing or lapping them and whether they were running the 50 or 100k.
The last 4 laps I averaged 6:30 (14-15 at 6:40 and 16-17 at 6:20) needing a few walking breaks on a couple of the small hills but still feeling pretty comfortable when running.
On the last lap I was passing quite a few people walking but when coming off the sandy section back onto the firm trail I got a cramp in my left hamstring... $#%&, talk about bad timing for my first cramp. I stretched it out and was able to start jogging again slowly getting back up to speed. I repassed a guy who passed me when I had the cramp but could hear him pick up the pace again and was dreading a sprint finish up the hill to the finish. I managed to put some space between us but during the last km I could hear some hooting and hollering behind me and knew someone else was on their final lap and not far behind me. I managed the last 500m at 5:12 pace sneaking under 5:00 for the last push which I was pretty happy to be able to do after running 50km. It turns out the hollering was from the pacer of the second place female who I later realised I had passed on the sandy section. She had also picked up the pace and came in about 30sec behind me.
Overall I was very happy with this race. I stuck to my plan and ended with my average HR spot on my target of 144. I think I could have gone a bit faster, possibly just under 5 hours if I pushed a bit harder. I came in 11th out of 37 in the 50k. 10th was almost 30min ahead of me so even if I did push harder I wouldn't have been around 4:40.
Mentally this was the toughest race I've done. Trying to stick to my plan and keep a consistent effort was tricky at times, especially after losing some time with the toilet break and losing more time than expected at the aid station (some other runners had a much better set up to save time). Running the same loop over and over again can also be a bit draining, but the extra encouragement along the way made it a bit easier.
I certainly learnt some good lessons for the Kep ultra in june. After trying to get some sleep in my car for a few hours I went back to watch the final laps of the 100k. There were a lot of painful looking runners shuffling along but they all seemed to be able to pick up a bit for the final laps with the finish in sight and all the grimaces turned to big smiles when crossing the line.
Good times.

C • 50km? 9

Easy effort run keeping away from the hills today.
Still very warm while running.