Race Report: Rut Rogue 40s - 40 miler

Well, just 3 weeks after doing the South Mountains 50k - I found myself at the start line for the Rut Rogue 40s.  This event has several distances you can do - I of course signed up for the longest one - the 40-miler.  (You can also do 40km or 50km.)  Was 3 weeks enough time to recover?  It didn't matter, because I was going to do this regardless.

We started off just a little after 7:30 am.  The course starts at a park and does one out-and-back segment to the east, and then another out-and-back segment to the west.  I didn't count the number of people that lined up, but it was probably around 20.  I started off toward the back of the pack, which was good because most people were running a pretty fast pace.  It didn't take long before they drifted away from me.

Prior to the start, I threw on an extra layer because I felt pretty cold (it was about 38 degrees).  So I had a short-sleeved shirt, and *two* long-sleeved shirts.  That turned out to be a mistake, as I was already getting pretty warm within the first mile.  I also had some ear warmers on, and some gloves.  The ear warmers came off at mile 1.  The gloves came off a half mile later.  I left the shirts as-is, but unzipped the outermost shirt to cool down a little bit.

The first mile was *fast* - 10:04.  Way too fast (for me) for a 40-mile run.  My heart rate was pretty low, though, and the course was very flat and non-technical.  So it definitely encouraged a fast pace.  Mile 2 was almost as fast - 10:37.  I'm running by myself now, so I've got some music playing in one ear.

I hit the first aid station (~ 4 miles) at 44 minutes.  I had a goal of being very efficient in my stops, and I definitely achieved it here.  In & out in 1 minute.  A volunteer refilled one of my bottles while I grabbed a PB&J sandwich, then I started walking while I ate the sandwich.  Once the sandwich was gone, I started jogging again.

My pace slowed to around 11:30-12:00 as the miles ticked away.  I arrived at aid station 2 (which is the turnaround for the first out-and-back, around 8.5 miles) at 1:37.  After another 1-minute stop I was heading back to the start.

It was difficult to judge where I was in the race (position-wise) since the 40-mile runners started 5 minutes before everyone else.  So I was getting passed by the 40k/50k runners.  There was also a 40-mile relay, but those runners were usually pretty easy to identify because they were running much faster and usually only had a handheld bottle (as opposed to a running pack).  I figured I was somewhere in the middle to the back of the 40-miler runners though.

It also started warming up some more, so I took off my outermost long-sleeved shirt and tied it around my waist.  I knew I'd be able to ditch it when I got back to the start (before I started the western out-and-back section).

I tripped a couple times, and then actually fell.  (It was a soft landing fortunately.)  I kept thinking "the easy trails will fuck you".  The problem with a nontechnical trail like this is that it lures you into complacency.  Then, you start getting lazy and stop picking your feet up as much as you should.  Pretty soon, your toe catches a tree root and sends you sprawling.

I hit the 10-mile mark at 1:55.  That's what I would normally run for a 10-mile distance (when I'm stopping after 10 miles).  For a 40-mile run, it was blazing fast.  I start wondering if I'm going to regret it.  Still, my heart rate is at very reasonable and sustainable level.

Things are starting to hurt now, though.  My lower abs for some reason (those never bother me) and my right ankle.  (I broke my right ankle in high school, so sometimes it gets temperamental for no reason at all.)  I took a tylenol to try to take the edge off.  I figured I'd take another one in a couple hours.

I got to aid station 3 (which is the same as aid station 1) around 2:37.  Another quick stop - this time a minute and a half.  I'm 13 miles in now -- one-third of the way.  Still going at an 8-hour pace.  "Only" a marathon left to do...

The first tylenol isn't helping much, and now my left shoulder has also joined the pain party.  So at 3 hours I take another one.  I'm sorely tempted to take a tramadol, which I also carry in case of dire emergency.  But I also consider that "cheating" in a way.  I stick with the over-the-counter stuff for now.

I keep thinking it would be so easy to quit once I get back to the start.  My truck was right there, after all.  Mentally, this was probably the low point of my day.  One thing I realized was that I didn't have any caffeine yet, other than the minuscule amount in the one gel I had eaten between aid stations.  I had a 5hr Energy shot in my pack, so I drank that.  Hopefully that would also help with my concentration and reduce the number of times I was tripping over rocks and roots.

I get back to the start line, which is aid station 4, at 3:32.  I had a lot of stuff to take care of, so it ended up being my longest stop - 7 minutes.  I ditched all 3 shirts and changed into a spare short-sleeved shirt I had in my truck.  I used the bathroom.  Finally, I did the normal aid station routine of refilling bottles, grabbing some food, and walking while I ate said food.  I'm 17 miles in now.

All the volunteers are so helpful and friendly, it's hard to feel 'down' when you're at the aid stations.  Mentally, I'm feeling much better now.  (The caffeine shot probably helped too.)  The next segment is the longest between aid stations - 7 miles.  I see the occasional relay runner fly by me, but no one that looks like a 40-mile runner.  I keep trudging along.  My pace has definitely slowed a lot -- 13:00 and 14:00 miles for the most part.  I'm still running the flats and downhills, but walking even the slight inclines.

Around mile 20, I tripped over another root and barely saved myself from falling.  MOTHERFUCKER!!!  I was mad at myself for losing concentration, and certainly mad at the root for existing.  Even when you don't fall, those trips take a lot out of you.  It takes a lot of energy to stop from falling, your heart rate spikes, and it's a mental drain too.  I walked for a minute to calm down...  "Serenity now..."

Pain-wise, I'm still struggling, and I shouldn't take any more tylenol for a few hours.  So I take an ibuprofen at hour 4.  Now, I said in my last race report that taking ibuprofen during endurance events is not recommended.  It puts strain on your kidneys when they're (usually) already stressed from dehydration.  Now, I was feeling exceptionally hydrated (I had already peed 3 times) - so I figured it was *probably* okay.

Around this time, I'm giving serious thought to just walking the second half of the race.  There's a generous 11-hour cutoff and I figured I wasn't going to catch anyone in front of me anyway.  Why torture myself?  I dismissed the thought for the moment...

Less than a mile later, I caught up to another runner.  It was on a (slight) incline, so we were both walking, but he stepped aside to let me pass.  "You're going faster than me", he said.  "Not by much" was my answer.  He went on to describe how he tripped over a root about a mile back, fell, and bashed his knee on another root.  "I think I probably tripped on the same fucking root", I told him as I moved ahead.

I'd be lying if I said that I didn't get a mental boost from that exchange.  It's not that I took any pleasure in his misfortune.  But it is motivating to know someone is feeling worse than you are.  And then I start thinking "he's still going - what's my fucking excuse".  And "time to harden the fuck up".  So I pick up the pace a little bit.

At hour 5, I'm still hurting, so I take another ibuprofen.  I'm not willing to play the tramadol card just yet...

I finally get to aid station 5 (24 miles) at 5:18.  I had a drop bag waiting for me if I needed it (which I didn't).  So it was a quick stop (~ 1 minute).  I started to leave and realized I was still carrying my gloves and ear warmer, so I turned around and stuffed them into my drop bag.  I also realized I had a pocket full of trash I had been carrying for a while (gel wrapper, empty 5hr energy shot, etc).  So I dumped the trash before finally getting back to business.  

Just one more 4.5 mile section before I hit the turnaround and start heading back.  I'd also get to see who was in front of me, and how close they were.  (So I'd know if I had any chance of catching them.)  Sure enough, I eventually started seeing people coming the other way, but they were far enough ahead I knew I'd never catch them.  I did see one couple about a half-mile from the turnaround.  (So they were 1 mile ahead of me.)  Still probably too far ahead to catch, unless they took an extended break at the aid station - or had something unexpected happen.  I'm really just more concerned about finishing, though.

I hit the turnaround (AS6, 28.5 miles, 6:14) and one of the volunteers is making pancakes on a camp stove.  That was great!  I made it a quick stop as usual, probably 1.5 minutes.  Now I would get to see who is behind me, and how close they are.

I met a woman coming the other way 0.6 miles from the turnaround, so I was 1.2 miles ahead of her.  I'd definitely need to keep moving at a decent pace to keep her from catching me.  I also ran into 2 guys about 1 mile from the turnaround (one of them was the guy that bashed his knee).  They were *probably* far enough back I didn't need to worry about them.

It occurred to me than I hadn't peed in a long time.  It had warmed up quite a bit, so I was definitely sweating more - but I had been pretty diligent about drinking.  (I have a reminder on my watch that beeps every 4 minutes.)  Where at the beginning of the race I was peeing about every 75 minutes, I hadn't peed in over 3 hours.  I didn't really *need* to go, but I stepped off the trail and tried to go so I could at least see how dehydrated I was.  I was able to pee a little, and it wasn't super dark, so I figured I was probably okay.  Still, I had to wonder if it had anything to do with taking the ibuprofen...  

I kept moving and got to aid station 7 (the last one, 33 miles, 7:11).  One of the organizers arrived (by car) just as I got there and we chatted for a minute.  He asked if I had a headlamp (I didn't) but said I probably wouldn't need one.  (I also had been watching the time and had already figured I'd get back before dark.)  I told him if I needed to, I could use the flashlight on my cellphone.  I had refilled one of my bottles, but left the 2nd one half-full (thinking that's all the hydration I'd need to get back.)  The organizer convinced me to fill the second bottle as well.  I thought it was unnecessary, but didn't want to argue about it.  I grabbed a couple oreos and started walking. 

I ran a few 15-minute miles, then started to pick up the pace some more.  I knocked out a couple 13-minute miles.  The last 0.8 (ish) miles I ran around a 10:00 pace - so I had a relatively strong finish.  I didn't catch anyone (or even see anyone) in that last section - in front or behind me.  My finish time was around 8:47, so I definitely slowed down a *lot* from the first 10-13 miles.  My watch showed I only had about 12.5 minutes when I was stopped, so I really was very efficient getting through the 7 aid stations on the course.

I did some stretching, changed clothes, and grabbed a little food before hitting the road.  I had another endurance challenge ahead of me -- driving 5 hours back to NC after such a long day.  Fortunately the drive was uneventful and I was sufficiently caffeinated that I never felt unsafe driving.

Side note:  I have to give Garmin a ration of shit for their shitty "LiveTrack" implementation.  It has failed on me for the last two races (and some training runs).  Basically, it'll work for about the first two miles, then it stops updating.  So sorry everyone that I tried sending the link to.  Maybe next time I'll just use Endomondo for the live tracking.  Sometimes I really wonder which 3rd-world shithole Garmin uses for their development.  Maybe it's time for Garmin to consider getting better software engineers?

Anyway - the results were posted a few days after the event, and I was able to verify that I was 14th out of 19 people who started.  (3 DNFs.)  My official time was 8:47:48.  I was the second oldest runner - one guy was 50.  That's still not really considered "old" by ultra running standards.

I also can see that there was no danger of anyone behind me catching me.  The next person finished 43 minutes later.  I was "only" 5 minutes behind the couple that finished before me.  Considering that they were probably 15 minutes ahead at the 28.5-mile aid station, I did pretty well at closing that gap on the way back to the start.



My next event is the Wicked Root double 50K in 5 weeks.  (50K Saturday, 50K Sunday...)  That should definitely be sufficient time to recover.

Speaking of recovery, I'm pretty sure 3 weeks was *not* enough time to recover fully from SoMo 50K.  So I'm not sure if I would plan to do events so close together again in the future.

Huge thanks to the organizers and volunteers at Rut Rogue 40s.  This was a well-run event and I'd recommend it to anyone.  The organizers had a lot of challenges this year and even had to relocate the event.  (We did not run the usual RR40 course.)  It would have been easy to just cancel it, but they found a way to make it happen!