2013 World 24-Hour Report - A View from the Middle of the Pack



“Not everything that can be counted counts and not everything that counts can be counted." — Albert Einstein 

     

This quote sums up my race at the 2013 World 24-hour Championship.  My race miles added up to a not so impressive middle-of-the-pack finish. My amazing team mates (Sabrina Little (American Record of 244.669K), Suzanna Bon (236.228K) and Traci Falbo (229.702K) came to the rescue and finished 2, 3 and 4 to grab the women’s Team Gold medal.  My race didn’t end up counting but witnessing the performances at the World Championship was something I will never forget. 

My boyfriend, Roger, and I arrived in Holland about 10 days before the race.  I thought this would be a good way to taper and see the country at the same time.  The one and only time I’ve been to Holland was back in 1982 and one of the things I did was visit the Heineken Brewery.  I still have my ticket from back then, when the entrance fee was 1 Dutch Guilder and that got you unlimited refills of beer.  That’s the equivalent of 58 US cents!  So we did go back and the “Heineken Experience” was quite different.  Besides being limited to 2 small glasses of beer, the entrance fee increased to 18 Euros (or about $23.00)!  Times have changed. 

After spending a few days in Amsterdam, we headed to the countryside for our 5-day cycling trip along the canals to the towns of Haarlem, Leiden, Delft and Gouda.  The scenery was gorgeous and the people very friendly.  And the bike paths can’t be beat.  We had perfect weather, sunny and cool.   And the food: white asparagus, stroup wafels, cheese and pancakes.  Delicious!  

Love the tulips!



Saw many of these!

The Leaning Tower.... of Delft!

Thursday night before the race we headed to the hotel where the US team was staying about 15k from the race start.  I had seen earlier weather forecasts, which called for rain only on Friday.  Obviously, I didn’t look at updated forecasts as that would change.

Friday afternoon we headed to the opening ceremonies.  Many Steenbergen residents had braved the weather and had come out to see this strange mix of runners from 34 countries.  Flags flew, the local school band played and it was a very festive mood.  The rain held off but skies were threatening.  I have to say that the parade, through the streets of Steenbergen to the town square, was inspiring.

Connie Gardner with the flag at the Opening Ceremony

I awoke on Saturday morning to light rain and cold temps.  By the time everyone got to the start for the noon gun, the rain had stopped although temperatures remained cold.  Since Team USA didn't have any "official" race tops that were for cold weather, I put on a large long-sleeved shirt under my race singlet.  That made me look 20 pounds fatter but I wasn't there to win any fasion contest!  I just needed to stay warm.

The race course was on some very pretty streets of the village with little elevation changes, exactly as advertised.  The surface was a mix of different kinds of brick pavers but all in very good shape.  The race also had a giant computer screen so that even with my poor eyes I could see my laps and mileage every time I passed the timing tent, a very cool set-up.  An added treat was the announcer.  Hard to imagine but there was continuous commentary from the start of the race until 10 PM, which resumed about 6AM until the end of the race.  Loudspeakers were set up along the course so you could hear the announcer at all times.  This was pretty neat as I always knew the position of the top runners as well as the team standings.  I think the announcer had the toughest job of all!

From the start there were a few male and female runners that went out at a frenetic pace.  I think at one point Lizzy Hawker may have been leading the entire race!  It was dizzying to see these runners lap me effortlessly.  As is often the case, however, the lead runners at the start of the race are not the lead runners at the end.  

A special mention to Bib No. 200, Vilnis Pliete of Latvia.  Nice race!  We kept running into each other on the course so send me a comment if you’re reading this!

About eleven hours in to the race, I was slowing down.  The weather was quite cold and my legs were freezing.  I stopped at the aid station and got stretched by Dr. Greg and then did a quick change into running tights.  That stop took about 30 minutes but I felt refreshed and I was able to pick up the pace for another hour or so.  Sometime after that, the rain started not sure when.  I got soaked to the bone before I decided to put on a rain jacket (not so smart to wait).  These rain jackets were not meant to run in and were actually not breathable.  So I alternated between being cold and hot in my soaking clothes.  It apparently hailed at some point.  I don’t remember this at all as I had my jacket hood draped over my head…. I just kept trudging on.  Just when I thought the rain had stopped, it started pouring again.

Before the announcer stopped for the night, I knew that my teammates Jon Olson and Sabrina Little, were high up in the standings.  As the night turned to daylight, most of the US runners were looking very strong every time they lapped me!  Around 3:30 AM, the rain seemed to stop and I stopped again for about 40 minutes to stretch and change my waterlogged shoes and socks (Thanks, Drymax for the many pairs of socks!).  My tights were really wet and cold but I didn’t have anything to change into so I sucked it up and went back on the course.  With the dawn, it became clear that there was a lot of carnage over the course of the night.  Many runners had stopped or were slowing down, myself included.  So it was exciting to see that the US men were running 1, 2 and 10 and the US women were running 2, 3 and 4.  WOW!  It was also amazing to see Mami Kudo, who ended up breaking the World’s Best Performance for a Road 24-hour with a 252.205k (156.713 miles).  At the end of the race, she was smiling and looked like she had just run a 10k!  The US ended up with 4 individual medals (Sabrina – Silver, Suzanna – Bronze, Jon Olsen, - Gold and first overall with 269.675K and John Dennis – Silver and second overall with 262,734K) and a Women’s and Men’s Team Gold medal.  Historic!

Thrilling to hear The Star Spangled Banner from the Podium!

I walked the last 4 ½ hours of the race but made sure to cheer on my teammates.  I finished with a little over 192K (almost 120 miles) and was 135 out of 243 total runners or 54 out of 89 female starters.  Not that good but, while my race didn’t count, as Albert Einstein said, “not everything that counts can be counted” and my experience at the 10th World Championship was one of these experiences -- priceless.

Preview of 2013 World Championship 24-Hour Race

          Although the 2012 World 24-hour Championship was held only nine months before the 2013 race is scheduled to take place, that fact has not dampened runners’ enthusiasm for the event.  Participation is again at over 250 runners (not including the Open division) for the 10th edition of the World 24-hour Championship in Steenbergen, The Netherlands.  I am also happy to see that, for the first time in its history, the number of women runners competing has broken 100.  Way to go ladies!

            As with last year's race in Poland, runners from 34 countries will be competing at the 2013 World 24-hour Championship.  For the team competition, 25 men’s team (up from 24 teams in 2012) and 23 women’s team will toe the starting line.  Again, the women’s teams continue to increase, up from 20 women’s teams from last year.  New to the competition from 2012 are women’s teams from The Netherlands, Sierra Leone and Spain.

            The US women are looking forward to defending their Team Gold medal and bringing home another one.  We have two new members, Sabrina Moran Little and Traci Falbo.  Both are very strong runners.  Coupled with super-athlete Connie Gardner (2012 Silver medalist), Suzanna Bon (5th in 2012) and Carilyn Johnson (making her 4th appearance at Worlds), I am anticipating big mileage numbers from my teammates.

            Competition, however, looks stiff.  Starting with the Japanese, World 24-hour track record-holder Mami Kudo will be leading the charge followed by her teammate Mikie Sakane (PB of 243k).  Lizzy Hawker, World 24-hour road record-holder, will be joining the already strong team from Great Britain.  The French team has two runners with over 230k as personal bests, Anne-Marie Vernet and Cécile Nissen.  Germany has two runners with personal best of over 228k,   Melanie Strass and Antje Krause.  And of course there are many amazing individual runners including 2012 Gold medalist Michaela Dimitriadu from the Czech Republic and Monica Casiraghi from Italy.  And I am sure I have missed some.  It will be an exciting race!

            On the men’s side, unfortunately 2012 Gold medalist Mike Morton will not be running on the US team as he is injured.  Nonetheless, I expect the US men will be right in contention for a medal with new team members Jon Olsen, Nick Coury and John Dennis.  US Bronze team scorers from 2012, Harvey Lewis and Joe Fejes, will be returning.  Last year, Germany won the men’s team Gold, followed by France with Silver breaking the dominance of the Japanese men's team for the last several years.  The Japanese men collectively had a bad race in Poland so do not underestimate them for the 2013 race.  Finally, I would be remiss in not mentioning that World 24-hour record-holder Yiannis Kouros will be competing for Greece.  Although he is 57 years old, he is still running strong and an inspiration to watch.

            Good luck to all runners or, as they say in Steenbergen, “Veel geluk!”

"Spring" North Coast 12 & 24-Hour Challenges Runners

I planned my last long run before the World 24-hour to coincide with the North Coast 12 and 24-hour race on April 20-21, 2013.  I signed up for the 12-hour race, not sure whether I would stick it out the entire time.  I didn't want to put too many miles on the legs before Steenbergen.

Of course, before the race, the weather in Cleveland was beautiful, some may say even a bit hot.  Two days before the race, temperatures were in the mid-80s....  The weather gods, however, were playing a cruel trick on us.  Before we could blink things changed around very quickly.....



Course immediately before the race.

Now, do not adjust your computer screen.  Yes, that is SNOW.  Now, snow by itself does not bother me.  I actually like running in colder weather.  The one potential drawback of the location of the North Coast race is that it is directly on Lake Erie.... and when there is bad weather it can be intensified by the Lake.  And so it was on Saturday.  The wind was downright wicked.  It was blowing out of the Northwest so we ran clockwise.  We got a HUGE tailwind running closest to the Lake and then got a HUGE headwind on the south side of the course.  At times, I was literally stopped in my tracks, the wind being so fierce.  And coming around to the lap counter by the beach, because of the wind direction, the path was covered in sand (although volunteers valiantly shoveled sand all day!)  Every lap, my face was sandblasted, mouth full of grit and shoes full of sand.



By the beach and running through sand.

As I lapped around the course, I started thinking, hmmm, this is "only" a training run.... it shouldn't be so hard.  I kept getting slower, the wind sucking all energy from me.  I did have a chance to chat with a number of runners, like Beth McCurdy, Liz Bondar and eventual 24-hour female winner, Alene Nizky, which was fun and entertaining.

Wind-blown but smiling....

After six hours of these conditions though, I started thinking I wanted to cut my 12-hours short.  I jogged up to Dr. Andy Lovy (US 24-Hour Team doctor, who was walking the race).  "Hey Andy," I said, "I'm thinking about calling it a day at 40 miles."  His response without missing a beat was "Good decision."  I didn't wait around for him to change his mind....  I now just had a few more laps and I could stop....  I hooked up with Hung Ng, who was struggling at that point (he ended up 2nd place in the 24-hour) and we walked some and then ran some to get me to 40 miles.  He continued on, claiming he was going to stop at 50 miles.  As usually happens in 24-hour races, he got a second wind and stayed out the entire time, hitting 120 miles.  Way to go!!

I, on the other hand, quickly packed up with my fantastic crew member, Courtney, and we headed to the nearest pub for some refreshments.

In spite of the miserable conditions, Race Director, Heidi Finniff, and all of the volunteers from the Cleveland West Road Runners were AMAZING.  The new timer, Charles Elkins, also had a wonderful set-up and you always knew exactly what your miles were as well as the people in front of you.  This race is truly first class and I definitely will be back, yes, rain or shine, snow or dry.... but keeping my fingers' crossed for no wind!

Special thanks to Charles Elkins, John Carroll and Pat Dooley for the photos.

Training for a 24-Hour Race

With a month to go until the World 24-Hour Championship in Steenbergen, The Netherlands, my training is winding down.  I have one 12-hour run planned for April 20th at the North Coast race and after that, my long runs are done until the World race.

What training plan works best for a 24-hour race?  It seems like I have tried them all and a successful performance on race day can depend on a number of things not even connected to one's training.  I think though that my optimum training plan is to run a number of consecutive marathons as my long runs before the race.   That way, I get in some faster running and longer distances but do not run too many miles and risk injury.  Of course, I know some super fast runners, like Mike Morton, who run consecutive 100-mile races to prepare for a 24-hour race!  The key here is to know your own body and what you can handle. 

I also like to run one speed workout on the track each week.  Again, this helps to put some spring in the step and keep my legs energized. 

For total weekly miles, the most mileage I have run to prepare for a 24-hour race is 100 but that is a tough number to hit when you work full-time.  To get in mileage during the week, I usually run twice a day, breaking up the run depending on my schedule, could be before or after work or even during lunch.  This schedule doesn't leave much time for anything else so this is not something I can maintain for months on end.

At the end of the day, don't sweat the training.  The mental aspect of the race is also important and sometimes I have my best races with little training but having the right mental frame of mind.  So regardless of your train, go out and enjoy the race!

Running at the North Coast 24-hour Race in Cleveland

Curling's Over, Time to Run

We just finished up the 50th curling season at Mayfield Curling Club.  For the last five months, I've been spending five nights a week at the curling club.  That makes it tough to squeeze in any long runs at night.  I now have no excuses to get ready for the 24-Hour Worlds in May.... except the weather. 

I know, I should be used to it.  I grew up in Wisconsin but I think I have gotten soft living so many years in balmy Ohio.  Last year, global warming was in full force here and we had multiple days in March where the temps hit 80!  This year, the ice age has returned and each morning I've been greeted by cold and snow.  Now that I have free time to run at night when there is more daylight, I still am stuck with snow, ice and cold.

Running the Green Jewel 50K this March -
it was supposed to be "green," not "white."

Curling's over and I am officially DONE with winter.  I don't want to see any more ice unless it is on a curling rink.  OK, I am now done with my rant.  Time to start running....

2013 US 24-Hour Team Selected

The 2013 United States 24-Hour Team was recently selected based on past 24-hour performances over the last 18 months.  I was fortunate to have a decent race in December after my not too impressive run at Worlds in Poland.  The team is as follows:

Women

Connie Gardner

Suzanna Bon

Sabrina Little (Moran)

Traci Falbo

Debra Horn

Carilyn Johnson

Men

Mike Morton

Jon Olsen

Joe Fejes

Harvey Lewis

Scott Traer

Nick Coury

I am looking forward to seeing old friends and meeting new ones on the team.  The World 24-hour race this year is fast approaching in May.  The race will be held in Steenbergen, The Netherlands.  I will post more information as race details become finalized.

Ultracurling vs. Ultrarunning - The verdict is in

I can now check ultracurling off of my bucket list.  This past weekend, I helped Mayfield Curling Club celebrate its 50^th Anniversary by participating in “50 hours of continuous curling.”  While I didn’t curl the entire 50 hours, I was able to curl 15 games, which translates into 30 hours of curling over a 2-day period.

The event kicked off with the 6:00 PM draw on Friday night, February 1st.  I started curling at 10:30 PM on Friday night when the regular draws had concluded.  Everyone was full of energy  and the stereo was cranking.  During “breaks,” some brave souls surfed on the rocks for our entertainment.  It was a continuous party!

Aubrey rock surfing

El Presidente displaying his talents

With the bright lights of the curling club and lack of windows, it was similar to being in a casino… easy to lose track of time!  When 5:00 AM rolled around, I couldn’t believe it as the time had flown by.  At 10:00 AM Saturday, I still felt wide awake but the regular men’s draw was starting so I went home for a few hours sleep.  I returned for the 4:45 PM draw on Saturday and continued until 8:30AM on Sunday, went home for more sleep before returning at 6:30PM for my regular mixed doubles draw, which concluded the 50 hours at 8:00 PM on Sunday night.

Julia, Jason, Steve and me ending 50 hours of curling at MCC.

 So what are the advantages of ultracurling over ultrarunning? 

1.        Everyone is much more social.  When I run ultras I go into my own little world and don’t talk to anyone. Ultracurling was highly entertaining!

2.        It is definitely not as tiring as ultrarunning.  I think the bright lights are a big help in staying awake.  Maybe I need to find an indoor ultramarathon?

3.        I can drink beer and eat hamburgers while ultracurling.

4.        I did not get one blister.

5.        I did not lose any toenails (but this is probably not a fair comparison since I currently only have a combined total of 4 toenails on both of my feet).

6.        I did not have to deal with rain, mud or wind (although there was a snowstorm outside).

And the disadvantages?

1.        While not as tiring as ultrarunnng, ultracurling has more repetitive use of certain muscles and joints.  I am right-handed.  Due to pushing out of the hack with my right foot over and over, my right quad, knee and Achilles were starting to protest at the end of the event.

2.       While I listed the social aspect of ultracurling as an advantage, it is also a disadvantage.  One of the things I like about ultrarunning is getting in the zone and not talking to anyone!

3.        Ultracurling involves a lot of thinking; what shots to call, when to sweep, etc.  Ultrarunning is much more relaxing because you don’t have to think about anything and can clear your mind – almost like meditation.

So, would I try ultracurling again?  Definitely!  But at the end of the day, I will stick with ultrarunning.